#255--THE KILLER SMOG
For five days commencing on December 5, 1952 in London, a combination of a temperature inversion, fumes from the burning of low-grade coal in furnaces and fireplaces, and heavy fog lead to the formation of a deadly smog which was essentially sulfuric acid vapor. It was originally thought that 4,000 people died as a result of their lungs filling with pus, but later studies indicate that the immediate death toll was actually closer to 12,000, in addition to an unknown number of persons whose lifespans were shortened as a result of damage to their pulmonary systems.
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