What's the most desperate way you can imagine to die?
Is it the ancient division of the corpses of five horses, dripping punishment, or a thousand cuts?
Compared with the above, a real incident that happened in 1999 can definitely be called the "most desperate" way to die.
39 innocent people were burned to ashes in the tunnel at a temperature of 1,000 degrees Celsius for 53 hours.
The sources of information in this article have been repeated at the end of the article, and in order to improve the readability of the article, the details may be polished, and are for reference only
On March 24, 1999, the Mont Blanc tunnel had its darkest day.
This traffic artery connecting France and Italy is full of traffic on weekdays, but no one expected that a disaster was quietly approaching.
On that day, Gilbert, a Belgian driver, drove a refrigerated truck to the tunnel entrance. The sun shines through the windshield on his face, and he hums softly, in a cheerful mood.
Carrying 9 tonnes of margarine and 12 tonnes of flour, the refrigerated truck was a normal transport task.
The special design of the refrigerated truck is to ensure the safety of the goods.
The state-of-the-art refrigeration system keeps the temperature inside the cabin precisely below zero, and the thick insulation material effectively blocks the influence of the outside temperature.
Soon after the refrigerated truck entered the tunnel, a fine plume of smoke began to drift from under the vehicle.
At first, the smoke didn't attract much attention. It was barely perceptible in the dim light of the tunnel.
However, as the vehicle continued to move forward, the smoke gradually thickened.
The first to notice the anomaly were the drivers and passengers of other vehicles in the tunnel.
Some people saw a faint fire flickering under the refrigerated truck, and others smelled a pungent smell of burning.
Some alert drivers began honking their horns in an attempt to get Gilbert's attention.
However, in the confined cab, Gilbey was oblivious to the changes in the outside world.
It wasn't until he saw the smoke through the rearview mirror that he realized the gravity of the situation.
He immediately pulled over the car and jumped out of the car to check on the situation.
By this time, the fire had already begun to spread. The fire extinguisher in the car was too small to extinguish all the flames.
The fire is getting bigger and bigger, and the temperature inside the tunnel is gradually rising.
Under the action of the heat, the margarine in the carriage began to melt, flowing down the cracks, becoming an accelerant, and the fire became more ferocious.
In the tunnel monitoring room, the monitor on duty was not aware of the seriousness of the situation at first.
He misjudged the rising smoke as ordinary exhaust emissions, believing it to be just a common vehicle failure.
However, when a loud explosion was heard, he woke up and realized that the situation was out of control.
Seconds before the explosion, Gilbert realized that the situation was irreparable.
Rushing to other vehicles in the tunnel, shouting loudly to remind people to escape as soon as possible. "Hurry up outside!" He shouted with all his might, his voice echoing through the tunnel.
However, it was already too late.
The blast wave from the explosion swept through the tunnel, and thick smoke quickly filled the narrow space.
Dozens of cars in the tunnel were instantly surrounded by thick smoke and fell into chaos.
Even though tunnel managers quickly closed the tunnel entrance and exit in an attempt to control the spread of the fire, it was too late, and many vehicles had already entered the tunnel, and this move also made the people inside the tunnel lose hope of escape.
And the position where the Gilbert car stopped was very delicate.
Mont Blanc is the highest in the Alps and is the highest point in Western Europe at 4,810 meters above sea level.
The Mont Blanc Tunnel connects France and Italy with a total length of 11,611 meters and is one of the most important transport hubs in Europe.
With around 2 million vehicles passing through the area every year, it is not only an important route for business and trade, but also a link between the cultures of the two countries.
However, on this day, this lifeline suddenly turned into a death trap.
At the time of the fire, many drivers and passengers were unaware of the approaching danger, and some chose to stay in their cars and wait for rescuers.
Others got out of the car and tried to escape on foot, just like the driver.
However, fate always likes to joke.
Just as people were still hesitating what to do, the disaster escalated.
Everyone knows that flour can easily explode when it encounters an open flame, and the car happened to be loaded with flour, which instantly caused a secondary explosion.
In an instant, the temperature in the tunnel soared to more than 1,000 degrees, like a moving furnace.
The heat and smoke quickly engulfed the entire tunnel, and it was already invisible at a distance of less than a meter.
Trapped people groped in the dark, some tried to find a safe exit, others curled up in their cars in despair.
The air was filled with the pungent smell of smoke and melted plastic, and every breath felt like swallowing flames.
The fire spread far beyond expectations.
In addition, the ventilation and fire extinguishing system of the tunnel was not opened in time, and the internal fire protection infrastructure did not play a timely role.
The tunnel management system was unable to cope with a disaster of this magnitude, and the emergency evacuation plan was not effectively implemented.
Rescuers on the Italy side acted immediately upon being alerted.
However, they are faced with an almost impossible task.
The temperature inside the tunnel is so high that even the most advanced firefighting equipment is almost impossible to get close to.
Thick smoke obscured vision, and toxic gases made it difficult for rescuers to penetrate deeply.
Every step forward is like walking on the tip of a knife, and your life can be in danger at any time.
As the minutes ticked by, the situation inside the tunnel did not improve at all.
The fire lasted for 53 hours, like a never-ending nightmare.
When the last flame was extinguished, the sight before the rescuers was heartbreaking: 39 lives were left forever in this earthly purgatory, and only about 10 survived.
The disaster not only caused huge casualties, but also caused hundreds of millions of economic losses.
Tunnel facilities are badly damaged and require extensive repairs; The economic damage caused by traffic disruptions is even more incalculable.
However, it is the real irreparable pain of the families who have lost loved ones in the disaster compared to these tangible losses.
The Mont Blanc tunnel fire has taught us a profound lesson.
It exposes many shortcomings in safety design and emergency management of long-distance tunnels.
After the accident, countries began to re-examine tunnel safety, and strengthened the construction and renovation of key facilities such as ventilation systems, firefighting equipment, and escape routes.
The disaster has also sparked reflection on the balance between technological development and security.
That nightmare day in 1999 is forever etched in the history of this tunnel.
It reminds us that behind the great project of man's conquest of nature, safety is always the primary consideration.
Resources
Documentary - "Return to the Scene of the Crisis"