The explosion brought the terror and death of World War I to North America. Some experts say that not until the first atomic bomb was dropped over Hiroshima did the world witness a man-made explosion that produced more casualties, covered a larger area, destroyed more property and produced more explosive force.

Not by coincidence, scientists on the Manhattan Project studied the Halifax disaster to predict the potential effects of their weapons.

Reminders of the explosion’s centennial were impossible to escape this week. Two more histories have been added to the dozens of other books, including one of Canada’s best-known novels, on the disaster. Plays, special exhibitions, films and events, as well as shop windows commemorating the anniversary, are spread throughout the city.