Honolulu molasses spill

Divers in the harbor area reported that all sea life in the area were killed by the molasses, which instantly sank to the bottom of the harbor and caused widespread deoxygenation. Members of various coral species were injured or killed, and more than 26,000 fish and members of other marine species suffocated and died, 17,000 corals were also estimated to have been killed. One diver named Roger White was sent down into the harbor to investigate the extent of the damage caused by the molasses, and his findings were as follows: "It was shocking because the entire bottom is covered with dead fish. Small fish, crabs, mole crabs, eels. Every type of fish that you don't usually see, but now they're dead. Now they're just laying there. Every single thing is dead. We're talking in the hundreds, thousands. I didn't see one single living thing underwater".

The Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar on Maui produces molasses from fresh sugar cane, and ships it to the mainland to be processed and sold. Matson had been transporting molasses from Honolulu Harbor for 30 years and at the time was shipping it about once a week.

Aftermath

There was never any danger towards humans due to the molasses, unlike in the Great Molasses Flood (or Boston Molasses Flood) which killed 21 people and injured 150 others. The danger of the Honolulu Molasses spill was caused by the effects of the molasses present in the water as it drastically increased the amount of bacterial growth due to the new abundance of sugar in the water. The other possible danger was the chance of increased predatorial activity from sharks, barracudas, and eels due to the copious amounts of deceased prey. Another potential adverse effect was the chance for unusual growth of marine algae that holds its own plethora of negative environmental impacts.

Some compare this molasses spill to the likes of an oil spill due to the devastation to marine life and the ecosystems that both induce. However, the clean up process for a molasses spill is quicker and more efficient than that of oil spills. By nature, molasses is able to mix with water, and due to this fact, the bacteria that essentially do all the clean up are able to access the molasses more readily than in the circumstances of an oil spill where there are big clumps of oil. The other factor that aids in molasses clean up is the number of bacteria that are able to breakdown sugar, compared to the number of bacteria that are capable of breaking down oil.