1. The Great Emu War
Back in 1932, Australia declared war on… emus. Yes, the large flightless birds were wreaking havoc on crops, and the military was called in to handle it. Spoiler: the emus won.
2. Dancing Plague of 1518
In Strasbourg, hundreds of people suddenly started dancing uncontrollably for days. Some danced themselves to death from exhaustion. No one knows why it happened.
3. Operation Paul Bunyan
In 1976, after North Korean soldiers killed two U.S. soldiers who were trimming a tree in the DMZ, the U.S. responded with a massive show of force to cut down the tree. It was a bizarre flex in a tense situation.
4. The London Beer Flood
In 1814, a huge vat of beer burst in London, sending a tidal wave of over 323,000 gallons of beer through the streets. Eight people drowned in beer. Yes, really.
5. The Year Without a Summer
In 1816, Mount Tambora erupted, causing global temperatures to drop. Crops failed, and snow fell in June. It was a year of extreme weather and food shortages.
6. The Tunguska Event
In 1908, a massive explosion flattened 800 square miles of forest in Siberia. The cause? Likely a meteorite or comet fragment, but no crater was ever found.
7. The Battle of Los Angeles
In 1942, anti-aircraft artillery fired into the night sky over L.A., thinking they were under attack. Turns out, there was no enemy – just nerves and maybe a weather balloon.
8. The Great Molasses Flood
In 1919, a storage tank burst in Boston, sending a wave of molasses through the streets at 35 mph, killing 21 people and injuring 150. Cleanup took months.
9. The Mad Gasser of Mattoon
In the 1940s, residents of Mattoon, Illinois, reported being attacked by a mysterious figure spraying gas into their homes. Despite numerous reports, no culprit was ever found.
10. The Dyatlov Pass Incident
In 1959, nine hikers died mysteriously in the Ural Mountains. Their tent was ripped open from the inside, and they fled into the freezing cold partially dressed. Theories abound, but no one knows what really happened.
11. The Great Stink
In 1858, the River Thames in London was so polluted that the stench was unbearable. It led to major public health reforms and the construction of the modern sewer system.
12. The War of the Stray Dog
In 1925, a stray dog crossing the Greek-Bulgarian border sparked a conflict between the two nations. Troops were mobilized, shots were fired, and it ended with intervention from the League of Nations.
13. The Great Smog of London
In 1952, a thick smog descended on London, lasting several days and causing thousands of deaths. It was a wake-up call for air quality regulations.
14. The Exploding Whale
In 1970, an attempt to dispose of a dead whale in Oregon by blowing it up went horribly wrong. Chunks of whale blubber rained down on spectators and cars nearby. Lesson learned.
15. Project Pigeon
During WWII, the U.S. developed a plan to use pigeons to guide missiles. The project never saw combat, but it was a real thing.
16. The Great Boston Fire
In 1872, a massive fire destroyed much of downtown Boston. What’s bizarre is that firefighters had trouble getting water because of frozen hydrants and sabotaged hoses.
17. The Battle of the Bees
In 1919, a swarm of bees attacked soldiers during a battle in East Africa. Both sides had to stop fighting to deal with the bees, leading to an unexpected and surreal ceasefire.
