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TIL in 1947 the British used 6800 tonnes of surplus WW2 explosives to destroy military infrastructure on the tiny island of Heligoland. Loss of the island was acceptable. The explosion resulted in one of the largest single non-nuclear detonations recorded. Newsreel footage in comments.

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lon6K TIL - Elephants can recognize themselves in a mirror, and also passed a body awareness test. These two tests are very rarely passed by non-primates.
Z8NOY TIL that over 600 fighter pilots of the Swedish Air Force were killed in training exercises during the duration of the Cold War. Eventually in the 1960's flight safety became a concern because aircraft became more expensive.
l7oxG TIL the Filair Let plane crash: Caused by an escaped juvenile crocodile that had been smuggled in a cabin bag. The passengers were so frightened they all ran away from the croc to the front of the cabin, altering the weight distribution making the plane uncontrollable. All but 1 person on board died
R7kPl TIL "Smart Aleck" was a real person, Alec Hoag, a pimp who stole from his prostitute wife's customers while they were "distracted" with her. He was caught, but bribed police to stay free. He became so successful that he felt he didn't have to bribe police anymore, at which point he was arrested.
78nAM TIL In late 70s-80s, 117+ healthy SE Asian men, many Hmong, died in their sleep mysteriously, leading to CDC investigation. The Hmong attributed it to evil spirit Dab Tog, inspiring Wes Craven's Freddy Krueger in "Nightmare on Elm Street."