Pigeons scatter through the thick London smog in Trafalgar Square, 1952, as shadowy figures and glowing neon signs fade into the haze of one of the city’s most infamous fogs.
Captured by Bettmann, this haunting image reflects the “Great Smog of London,” a deadly event caused by coal smoke and weather conditions that brought the city to a standstill for five days.
Did you know? The Great Smog of December 1952 killed an estimated 12,000 people and led directly to the UK’s Clean Air Acts of the 1950s and 1960s, reshaping environmental policy.
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