11th August, 2014 by Amy Hopkins

Fires, explosions and massive spillages have long plagued the spirits industry, but these are the world’s 10 worst distillery disasters.

Vast improvements in health and safety mean that disasters are rarely encountered in today’s distilling world.

But with high temperatures and an intensely flammable substance, accidents do indeed still occur, sometimes with catastrophic consequences.

Whether its the accidental flushing away of precious aged stocks, or a massive fire spread across giant maturation warehouses, distilling continues to see the occasional tragedy.

Thankfully, few reach the same level of destruction as distillery disasters of the past, such as the Great Boston Molasses Wave or the raging whisky bonded warehouse fire that claimed the lives of 19 firemen.

Click through the following pages to see the world ‘s 10 worst distillery disasters. If you think we’ve missed a catastrophe in the distilling world off this list, let us know by leaving a comment below.