10 Terrible Mistakes That Actually Changed Things For The Better

Welcome to WatchMojo, today were looking at some horrifying mistakes, which surprisingly improve things in the long run.

The Hindenburg Disaster

Flying a plane is safer than driving a car, but in an alternate reality, it might be the opposite. This would be the reality without the Hindenburg disaster, where most planes could instead be strapped full of huge balloons, loaded with explosive gas. A century ago, these rigid airships were in their prime, especially within Germany. The first flight happened in 1900, but in 1937 the Hindenburg disaster revealed just how dangerous they were. It was the largest airship in the world, bursting into flames in the skies of New Jersey. Next time youre scared of flying, just be thankful theres not a balloon full of hydrogen gas strapped to the airplane's roof.

San Francisco Earthquake

California is right on the boundary between two tectonic plates, hence making it a region where earthquakes are common. Nowadays, we have an extensive knowledge of the phenomena, and most Californian cities are designed with them in mind. We acquired these things through immense suffering, primarily because in 1906, roughly 80% of San Francisco was destroyed. Words can only scratch the surface of how horrifying such a disaster would have been. The city was almost completely wiped out, but as we all know, San Francisco stands tall today. If the disaster hadnt happened, then we might have had to learn our lesson even later down the line, potentially losing even more lives.

Apollo 13 Disaster

In April 1970, this lunar expedition simultaneously became one of NASAs biggest disasters, and greatest triumphs. On its way to the Moon, Apollo 13 had a catastrophic oxygen tank explosion. They had to cancel the landing, instead slingshotting the astronauts around the Moon, and then landing back on Earth. It was one of many heroic moments in NASAs history, with their amazing response being dramatized multiple times. It not only influenced later designs of ships, but also emphasized how important adaptability is in space travel. Additionally, it inspired countless individuals to pursue a career in space exploration, with the ordeal captivating the entire globe.

The Ford Pinto Scandal

Back in the 70s, one of Fords main cars was the Pinto, with over 3 million being produced prior to 1980. Unfortunately, it was remarkably dangerous, being prone to explode in rear-end collisions. Ford was reluctant to recall the faulty vehicles, seeming to care little about fixing their mistake. On the bright side, the scandal prompted major changes in law, specifically in holding manufacturers responsible. In the end, Ford suffered serious financial repercussions for their negligence, thus telling the whole world that profits shouldnt come before safety. So even though many people once drove these four-wheeled bombs, be thankful it rarely happens today.

The Great Fire of London

If you visit Britains capital city, youll find very few to no wooden buildings. The opposite would be true if you were a tourist before 1666, when the houses were packed tight, with thatched roofs all around. It took just one baker to set the whole city ablaze, but on the bright side, there were far fewer deaths than youd expect. The city burned bright for four days, destroying most of central London. As a result, the city was rebuilt out of much less-flammable stone, also causing major improvements in fire-fighting. Contrary to popular belief, it didnt stop the plague, but that doesnt discount the other long-term benefits.

Titanics Sinking

When the worlds largest ocean liner sank, it had barely enough lifeboats to carry everyone onboard. Other mistakes included sailing at full speed, despite ice warnings, and barely testing the ship before sailing. Approximately 1,500 people lost their lives in the incident, many instantly dying from the cold sea. While it would have been terrifying to live through, without it, we wouldnt have made so many improvements in maritime safety. It prompted ship designers to include more lifeboats, alongside testing their ships more thoroughly. Soon after, the International Ice Patrol was founded, an iceberg monitoring organization, making sailing much, much safer.

Challenger Space Shuttle Disaster

In 1986, NASA launched the Challenger Space Shuttle, which was a catastrophic failure. The entire crew died within minutes of launching, all because of a design flaw that they were well aware of. Engineers thought cold conditions would cause the shuttle to explode, which it did almost instantly. The people in charge decided to ignore the warnings, because they had delayed the flight multiple times, and thus were worried about bad press. Learning from this, NASA hasnt had a disaster of such monumental proportions since. It knocked some sense into the people in charge, finally convincing them to listen to their engineers, thus improving space flight safety forever.

The Great Molasses Flood

Molasses are known for being a thick, slow, sticky substance, not a liquid capable of a tsunami, like water. Well, in 1919 a molasses tsunami devastated Boston. Approximately 2.3 million gallons of molasses ruptured its storage tank, creating a wave that killed 21 people. The tank's creators were beyond negligent, not testing it for leakage, plus using substandard steel. When the leaking was noticed, they decided to paint it brown and hide it. Thankfully, it taught us a whole lot of safety lessons, thus preventing a repeat performance of such a horrifying disaster.

Bhopal Gas Disaster

In 1984, the world experienced its worst-ever industrial disaster. In Bhopal, India, more than half a million people were exposed to an extremely toxic gas. Thousands perished as a result, with hundreds of thousands being injured. It was caused by a factory leak, which had extremely poor safety standards. In its wake, worldwide health and safety standards experienced immense reform. This included a greater focus on disaster prevention, alongside better emergency responses. While it would have been a living hell to experience, at least its not been repeated. We can also be hopeful that it will forever remain humanitys worst industrial disaster.

Penicillin

Taking our top spot, its a mistake that was only terrible for being an experimental blunder. Scottish physician Alexander Fleming was experimenting on bacteria, and decided to go on holiday, leaving some plates behind to inoculate. He accidentally left a plate open, causing it to go mouldy. This turned out to be potentially historys most successful academic mistake, as the mould had killed all the bacteria. Thus, the first ever antibiotic was discovered, with penicillin becoming humanitys first ever wonder drug. Now, youre unlikely to die from a small scratch getting infected, which we can all thank penicillin for.

Were there any other horrendous mistakes we missed, which made things better in the future? Leave them in the comments!