Poisonous Inferno: World War II Tragedy at Bari Harbour

by George Southern

The terrible events of December 2nd, 1943 in the Italian port of Bari have been shrouded in secrecy and subject to official censorship. On that night, an Allied convoy of twenty-one ships, carrying highly-flammable fuel and ammunition was bombed by the Luftwaffe as its volatile cargo was being unloaded. It was a devastating attack and the ships trapped in the overcrowded harbor soon became an exploding mass of burning oil and white hot metal. For many crew, survival from this mayhem was to leap into the harbor waters and pray for rescue. But the rescued and the rescuers did not know that they were immersed in a deadly cocktail of oil and liquid mustard gas. This is the story of that fatal night and its terrible lingering aftermath told by a man who was there.

208 pages, Hardcover

First published April 9, 2005

Reviews

[Ian Chapman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A labour of years, very well written by the naval petty officer survivor. He advertised in local papers for fellow survivors, to hear their testimonies. Also with some unusual photographs. Includes an interesting chapter on effects of pollution to Italian fisheries. Many researched sources, not academically referenced. The plan of wrecks in the the port does not tie in with the narrative accounts, and a basic map of Southern Italy would help.

[Valerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My father was hospitalized in Bari, Italy in December 1943. He attributed his hospitalization to "burns" but never spoke in detail about what had happened. I stumbled across the story while I was preparing for a trip to Italy which included Bari.

Bari Harbour was a major centre receiving supplies needed for the Allied invasion of Italy in 1943. The docks were crammed with boats loaded with ammunition, weapons and bombs, as well as food and clothing. One of the US ships was carrying a load of mustard gas -- a weapon of biological warfare prohibited by the Geneva Convention. When the Luftwaffe bombed the harbour, the ship exploded, releasing toxic mustard gas into the water and air, and causing extensive burns to the bodies of any sailor who came in contact with it. Afraid that the Nazis would retaliate if they found out about the mustard gas, the British and American governments expunged all references to it from the official record, including the medical records of the 800 or so sailors injured. The cover up persisted for decades. It wasn't until the 1980s that a permanently disabled sailor was first compensated explicitly for the injuries he suffered at Bari. Southern has done a great job of talking to survivors and "bearing witness" to their trauma and grief. He doesn't spare the graphic details of the terrifying explosions and appalling injuries. There is overlap in the men's stories, which could have been edited out, but Southern understood that, after decades of being silenced, his witnesses needed to be heard. Anyone with an interest in WWII will be fascinated to read about this (still) little known assault and the ensuing coverup.