Site of the Silvertown Munitions Factory Explosion

The Silvertown explosion occurred in Silvertown in West Ham, Essex (now Greater London) on Friday, 19 January 1917 at 6.52pm. The blast occurred at a munitions factory which was producing explosives for Britain's World War I military effort. Approximately 50 tons of Trinitrotoluene (TNT) exploded, killing 73 people and injuring over 400, and also causing substantial damage to buildings and property in the local area. This was possibly the largest single explosion to occur in Britain up to that time.