DROWNED BY BEER: THE 1814 LONDON BEER FLOOD
Were there consequences for the brewery? The streets of St. Giles smelled like beer for many months afterward. The flood cost the brewery over £23,000 pounds (£1.25 million pounds today), but they were able to reclaim the excise duty paid on the beer and were granted £7,250 (£400,000 today) as compensation for the barrels of lost beer, which saved them from bankruptcy. But what about the deaths? Although the brewery was taken to court, the London courts ruled the flood was an “Act of God,” and the eight victims had lost their lives “casually, accidentally, and by misfortune.” Nobody was held responsible. We’re not so certain the Horse Shoe Brewery would’ve been as lucky in American courts! Thanks for joining us in remembering this very strange historical event, and we’ll see you next month.
Drowning from beer became a real and dangerous cause of death in 1814, when the iron rings on massive vats of beer snapped loose. This bizarre, tragic event claimed the lives of eight people. Here’s the story about the time a tsunami of hot, fermenting beer came pouring down on densely populated streets of London.
snapped. An hour later, the whole tank broke open, releasing hot, fermenting ale with such incredible force that the back wall of the brewery collapsed. It also crashed open several more vats, releasing nearly 320,000 gallons of beer into the area. It created a 15-foot wave of beer and debris. The flood swept through the St. Giles Rookery, a densely populated London slum filled with cheap housing inhabited by prostitutes, criminals, and the destitute. Eight people — Irish mourners in a basement, a mother and her child, and a teenage barmaid — were killed. Despite the dangers, some people scooped up as much liquid as they could in whatever containers they could find. Consequently, a ninth death was reported days later due to alcohol poisoning.
An ‘Act of God,’ London courts proclaimed.
In St. Giles, London, the Horse Shoe Brewery stood at the corner of Great Russell Street and Tottenham Court Road — which is nearly in the exact middle of London. They had 22-foot- high wooden fermentation tanks installed on the premises, held together by massive iron rings. These vats held over 3,500 barrels of brown porter ale, which is a beer similar to stout.
During one busy afternoon on Oct. 17, 1814, an iron ring around the tank
UNIQUE MEDICARE 2021 CHANGES, PART III HISTORIC MEDICARE CHANGES THIS YEAR
In the nine years I have offered Medicare Advantage plans, I have seen the number and especially the quality of the plans increase significantly. Nationally, more Medicare Advantage plans are offered now than ever before. In Nebraska and Iowa, I have seen the number of counties offering quality plans explode. There are now over 4,800 Medicare Advantage plans nationwide, an increase of 76% over 2017. The average person will choose from 33 plans offered by eight different insurance companies, with some areas having as many as 60 different plans. Besides, the number of Special Needs Plans (SNPs) also increased to nearly 1,000 in 2021, a sizable jump. SNPs are for the chronically ill or very poor. The increase in SNPs means more people have access to low-cost plans with extra benefits to manage chronic conditions and diseases. Medicare Advantage Premiums in 2021 Average Medicare Advantage premiums dropped for the fourth consecutive year to $21 in 2021, down from $25 in 2020. Nearly 90% of all Medicare Advantage plans include Part D prescription drug coverage.
Another thing to note is that the Medicare Advantage out-of-pocket maximum will increase to $7,550 in 2021, up significantly from $6,700 in 2020. However, the vast majority of insurance companies set their out-of-pocket max well below the government limit. In 2020, the average Medicare Advantage out-of-pocket maximum was $4,900. Medicare Advantage and ESRD The most heartening plan change for Medicare Advantage is ESRD (End-Stage Renal Disease). When I first started, the only preexisting condition that excluded someone from enrolling in a Medicare Advantage plan was ESRD. While I didn’t have that situation very often, it was sad when I couldn’t offer Part C to clients. There’s good news for people with ESRD in 2021. For the first time, people with ESRD have low-cost options to control their health care expenses with a Medicare Advantage plan. Access to Medicare Advantage when you have ESRD is massive, so let me and my team know if this applies to you or someone you love and stay tuned for more Medicare information.
2 • OmahaInsuranceSolutions.com
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