By Greg Deegan
Not many people know that perhaps the greatest tragedy in Cleveland history happened in October 1944, when an East Ohio Gas facility located in the neighborhood now called St. Clair-Superior leaked natural gas, causing a devastating explosion. On October 20, 1944 – an detonation later estimated to be equivalent of ⅙ of the power of the atomic bomb that wiped out Hiroshima – killed 130 people, injured 225 more, left homeless 680 people, and leveled 79 homes.
The disaster occurred when a storage tank leaked and emitted a stream of liquified natural gas that, pushed by Lake Erie winds, expanded into a thick white vapor and spread throughout the area, making it into the nearby sewers through the catch basins of street gutters. Mixing with air and sewer gas, sewer lines underground exploded for miles around. To make matters worse, 20 minutes after the first explosion, another tank exploded. People who had returned home after the initial blast soon found their homes engulfed in flames from fire that traveled through the sewers and up into their home drains.
Don Robertson’s The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread is a remarkable novel set in Cleveland on that fateful day. The story centers on nine-year-old Morris Bird III, who embarks on a seemingly innocent journey around nearby east side neighborhoods of Cleveland, pulling his little sister in a wagon to visit a former schoolmate.
This personal quest for self-perceived bravery takes place against the backdrop of a city unaware of the impending disaster. Robertson’s narrative style contributes to the building suspense and offers glimpses into the lives of other Cleveland residents oblivious to the looming catastrophe. The creeping gas leak itself is almost personified, subtly weaving its way through the narrative as another character, foreshadowing the tragedy that will soon engulf the city.
Amidst this large-scale tragedy, Robertson masterfully focuses on “heroism writ small.” While the boy’s journey is motivated by a personal desire to prove his courage, the events of the explosion thrust him into real danger and necessitate genuine acts of bravery. During the unfolding events, Morris encounters a legless man who dubs him “the greatest thing since sliced bread” – underscoring the unexpected places where heroism can be found. The novel clearly explores themes of innocence lost and the suddenness of growing up in the face of extraordinary circumstances.
Even the great Stephen King reviewed the 2008 book, calling it a “brilliant piece of writing – a book to put on the same shelf as The Catcher in the Rye and The Outsiders.” And although both the book and the historical tragedy are not incredibly well-known, Robertson’s work expertly captures a moment in Cleveland’s history as well as a poignant moment in a young child’s life that will change him forever.
