London has marked the 350th anniversary of the Great fire of London by setting fire to model of the City on a barge out in the Thames. According to the London Fire Brigade, the fire started on Sept. 2, 1666. As buildings were built closely together and were made of timber, the fire was able to spread easily. A drought caused by a dry summer and strong winds also made it possible for the fire to do significant damage. The linked CBC feature says the official death toll was just six people, but it is believed many others died from related causes. The fire was stopped days later on Sept. 6 by blowing up houses in the fire’s path to give it space to stop. Ultimately, over 13,000 homes were destroyed by the fire. The fire came at the end of the Great Plague, which overtook London for many months in 1665 and 66. Some 100,000 people died.
