7 December 1941 Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, which led U.S. entry into World War II.

Nov. 26, 1941 strike formations of the Japanese Imperial Navy under the command of Vice Admiral Nagumo Chūichi ordered Isoroku Yamamoto, commander of the fleet left the base in the Gulf of Hitokappu Kuril Islands and headed for Pearl Harbor. Japanese connection included six carriers: “Akagi”, “Hiryu”, “Kaga”, “Sekaku”, “Soryu” and “Dzyuykaku”, which housed 441 aircraft, including fighters, torpedo bombers, dive bombers and fighter-bombers. Escort carriers were 2 battleships, 2 heavy and 1 light cruiser and 11 destroyers (other sources – 9 destroyers and 6 submarines).

The purpose of the attack on Pearl Harbor was to neutralize the U.S. Pacific Fleet in order to ensure freedom of action of the Japanese Army and Navy in the south-east Asia.

On the morning of December 7 aircraft from Japanese carriers launched strikes against airfields on the island of Oahu and on ships at anchor in the harbor of Pearl Harbor. Was 4 battleships sunk, 2 destroyers, 1 mine layer. Another 4 battleships, 3 light cruisers and 1 destroyer suffered serious damage. American aircraft losses were 188 aircraft destroyed, another 159 were seriously damaged. The Americans lost 2,403 men killed (more than 1000 on board the battleship exploded “Arizona”) and 1,178 wounded. The Japanese lost 29 aircraft – 15 dive-bombers, 5 torpedo bombers and 9 fighters. Sunk 5 midget submarines. Losses in men were 55. Another – Lieutenant Sakamaki – was captured. He He swam to shore after his midget submarine hit a reef.

In terms of immediate effect, the attack on Pearl Harbor turned into an incredible success for Japan, surpassed all expectations of those who planned the operation. Neutralization of the U.S. Pacific Fleet at 6 months allowed Japan to easily capture a large part of South-East Asia, including Hong Kong, Burma, Dutch East Indies, Malaya, Singapore and the Philippines.

Throughout history, humans have always been prone to accidents. Our aim is to list the top 10 most expensive accidents in the history of the world as measured in dollars.
This includes property damage and expenses incurred related to the accident such as cleanup and industry losses. Many of these accidents involve casualties which obviously cannot be measured in dollar terms. Each life lost is priceless and is not factored into the equation. Deliberate actions such as war or terrorism and natural disasters do not qualify as accidents and therefore are not included in this list.

10. Titanic $150 Million

The sinking of the Titanic is possibly the most famous accident in the world. But it barely makes our list of top 10 most expensive. On April 15, 1912, the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage and was considered to be the most luxurious ocean liner ever built. Over 1,500 people lost their lives when the ship ran into an iceberg and sunk in frigid waters. The ship cost $7 million to build ($150 million in today’s dollars).

9. Tanker Truck vs Bridge $358 Million

On August 26, 2004, a car collided with a tanker truck containing 32,000 liters of fuel on the Wiehltal Bridge in Germany. The tanker crashed through the guardrail and fell 90 feet off the A4 Autobahn resulting in a huge explosion and fire which destroyed the load-bearing ability of the bridge. Temporary repairs cost $40 million and the cost to replace the bridge is estimated at $318 Million.

8. MetroLink Crash $500 Million

On September 12, 2008, in what was one of the worst train crashes in California history, 25 people were killed when a Metrolink commuter train crashed head-on into a Union Pacific freight train in Los Angeles. It is thought that the Metrolink train may have run through a red signal while the conductor was busy text messaging. Wrongful death lawsuits are expected to cause $500 million in losses for Metrolink.

7. B-2 Bomber Crash $1.4 Billion

Here we have our first billion dollar accident (and we’re only #7 on the list). This B-2 stealth bomber crashed shortly after taking off from an air base in Guam on February 23, 2008. Investigators blamed distorted data in the flight control computers caused by moisture in the system. This resulted in the aircraft making a sudden nose-up move which made the B-2 stall and crash. This was 1 of only 21 ever built and was the most expensive aviation accident in history. Both pilots were able to eject to safety.

6. Exxon Valde $2.5 Billion

The Exxon Valdez oil spill was not a large one in relation to the world’s biggest oil spills, but it was a costly one due to the remote location of Prince William Sound (accessible only by helicopter and boat). On March 24, 1989, 10.8 million gallons of oil was spilled when the ship’s master, Joseph Hazelwood, left the controls and the ship crashed into a Reef. The cleanup cost Exxon $2.5 billion.

5. Piper Alpha Oil Rig $3.4 Billion

The world’s worst off-shore oil disaster. At one time, it was the world’s single largest oil producer, spewing out 317,000 barrels of oil per day. On July 6, 1988, as part of routine maintenance, technicians removed and checked safety valves which were essential in preventing dangerous build-up of liquid gas. There were 100 identical safety valves which were checked. Unfortunately, the technicians made a mistake and forgot to replace one of them. At 10 PM that same night, a technician pressed a start button for the liquid gas pumps and the world’s most expensive oil rig accident was set in motion.
Within 2 hours, the 300 foot platform was engulfed in flames. It eventually collapsed, killing 167 workers and resulting in $3.4 Billion in damages.

4. Challenger Explosion $5.5 Billion

The Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed 73 seconds after takeoff due on January 28, 1986 due to a faulty O-ring. It failed to seal one of the joints, allowing pressurized gas to reach the outside. This in turn caused the external tank to dump its payload of liquid hydrogen causing a massive explosion. The cost of replacing the Space Shuttle was $2 billion in 1986 ($4.5 billion in today’s dollars). The cost of investigation, problem correction, and replacement of lost equipment cost $450 million from 1986-1987 ($1 Billion in today’s dollars).

3. Prestige Oil Spill $12 Billion

On November 13, 2002, the Prestige oil tanker was carrying 77,000 tons of heavy fuel oil when one of its twelve tanks burst during a storm off Galicia, Spain. Fearing that the ship would sink, the captain called for help from Spanish rescue workers, expecting them to take the ship into harbour. However, pressure from local authorities forced the captain to steer the ship away from the coast. The captain tried to get help from the French and Portuguese authorities, but they too ordered the ship away from their shores. The storm eventually took its toll on the ship resulting in the tanker splitting in half and releasing 20 million gallons oil into the sea.
According to a report by the Pontevedra Economist Board, the total cleanup cost $12 billion.

2. Space Shuttle Columbia $13 Billion

The Space Shuttle Columbia was the first space worthy shuttle in NASA’s orbital fleet. It was destroyed during re-entry over Texas on February 1, 2003 after a hole was punctured in one of the wings during launch 16 days earlier. The original cost of the shuttle was $2 Billion in 1978. That comes out to $6.3 Billion in today’s dollars. $500 million was spent on the investigation, making it the costliest aircraft accident investigation in history. The search and recovery of debris cost $300 million.
In the end, the total cost of the accident (not including replacement of the shuttle) came out to $13 Billion according to the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

1. Chernobyl $200 Billion

On April 26, 1986, the world witnessed the costliest accident in history. The Chernobyl disaster has been called the biggest socio-economic catastrophe in peacetime history. 50% of the area of Ukraine is in some way contaminated. Over 200,000 people had to be evacuated and resettled while 1.7 million people were directly affected by the disaster. The death toll attributed to Chernobyl, including people who died from cancer years later, is estimated at 125,000. The total costs including cleanup, resettlement, and compensation to victims has been estimated to be roughly $200 Billion. The cost of a new steel shelter for the Chernobyl nuclear plant will cost $2 billion alone. The accident was officially attributed to power plant operators who violated plant procedures and were ignorant of the safety requirements needed.

The political cartoon arguably dates all the way back to the time of Martin Luther. In Luther’s battle against the Catholic Church, he decided that it would be beneficial to enroll the support of the less educated masses. By illustrating the hypocrisies Luther saw in the Catholic Church, he was able to influence the political opinion of many of those who couldn’t read.

Many years later, Benjamin Franklin created another famous political cartoon. The image was of a severed snake with the words, “JOIN, or DIE” written on the bottom. The drawing became a popular symbol in American culture that grew to mean much more than its original use.

If we move forward another hundred years, we come across political cartoons in Harper’s Weekly. The publication printed the work of Thomas Nast. He was a man of impressive skill in illustration, but his cartoons’ written messages were always quite blunt. He was successful, however, in bringing attention to William Tweed. Tweed was a corrupt politician and Nast’s cartoons turned the public against Tweed who was famous for saying, “Stop them damned pictures. I don’t care so much what the papers say about me. My constituents can’t read. But, damn it, they can see pictures!”

Later, a more nuanced artist came along by the name of Joseph Keppler. Keppler brought the Austrian magazine Puck to the United States and began to publish it in English. He was known more for his wit than anything, and his illustrations served to elucidate complex political issues for Puck readers.

Since the time of these early pioneers, editorial cartoons have continued to be a big part of political discourse. They kept up with public sentiment through controversies over Native Americans, women’s suffrage, scandal, celebration, and intrigue. Editorial cartoons have even moved out of the realm of the newspaper and magazine. You can find cartoons on critical and patriotic gifts in the United States and around the world. in the United States and around the world.

Source: http://www.amazines.com/Art_and_Culture/article_detail.cfm/953664?articleid=953664
Written by: ARTHUR RICH