A history talk exploring one of Dublin's great forgotten tragedies will take place on Saturday as part of the Dublin Festival of History.
The Great Liberties Whiskey Fire of 1875 took place on June 18 that year, resulting in the loss of 13 lives and over €6 million worth of damage in whiskey alone.
However none of the fatalities were due to burns or smoke inhalation, but rather alcohol poisoning, as people flooded the streets to drink from the six-inch deep river of whiskey flowing towards the Coombe and the Grand Canal.
The fire is believed to have started at Malone's Malt house and a bonded storehouse in the Liberties, where 5,000 barrels of whiskey were being stored.
The fire spread quickly as the barrels burst and the whiskey carried flames like petrol.
The whiskey river flowed six inches deep and for at least 400m towards the Coombe, where it came close to doing damage to the Coombe Hospital and the Daughters of Charity convent.
The area was evacuated, but many people began to collect and drink the whiskey, leading to 24 hospitalisations and, sadly, 13 fatalities.
A virtual talk about the Fire will take place tomorrow, lead by Las Fallon, a retired Dublin firefighter, historian, and author has written extensively on the role Dublin Fire Brigade and some individual firefighters played during the Irish Revolution and on the history of the Irish fire service generally.
You can get your hands on free tickets here.
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