The Great Molasses Flood was a shocking and unexpected disaster. Although the Great Molasses Flood was a shock to the people, it could have been prevented by better construction of the molasses tank and it would not have the legacy it has today.

The Great Molasses Flood was a very destructive disaster which deeply affected the people of Boston's north end. The molasses killed twenty-one people and covered streets, buildings, and the harbor. Passage 2 states,"Hundreds of workers, including Red Cross volunteers and sailors from the USS Nantucket, labored to remove the molasses from the streets, buildings, and even the harbor. The cleanup was made more difficult by the cold weather that followed the flood, causing the molasses to harden". Another example of the damage the Great Molasses Flood caused, is when Pop talks about what happened to him and his father as a kid. He explains how the molasses dislodged the train and they had to use the emergency exit to escape, showing the danger of the flood. Passage 1 states,"as the wave struck the train trestle, the train car became dislodged from the track. My father opened the emergency door, pushed me out, then jumped, and …show more content…
The tank of molasses would constantly leak and instead of fixing the problem, they just painted the tank brown to hide their construction mistakes. The text says,"The poorly constructed tank had shown signs of structural weakness for years." It finally gave way under the immense strain. Workers reported hearing the tank groaning, even a few weeks after it was built in 1914. Children would approach the tank with sticks and scrape dripping molasses from the sides for a sweet treat. The company bosses ordered that the tank be painted brown to camouflage the consistent leaks. This shows just how easy it would have been to prevent this disaster if the company had taken action