Largest mammal to explode, forced

The largest mammal ever exploded was the eight-ton 13.7 m.-(45-ft)-long carcass of a sperm whale washed up south of Florence, Oregon, USA. On 12 November 1970, the Oregon State Highway Division placed 0.45 tonnes (0.5 tons) of dynamite around the foul-smelling whale and detonated it. State Highway Engineer George Thornton made the decision to blow up the whale because the tide would soon uncover it if it was buried and nobody was keen on the grisly task of cutting it into small pieces for birds and crabs to eat. Numerous spectators as well as a local TV crew gathered to see the sight, but when the dynamite was detonated they found themselves being pelted by large pieces of rotten blumber. One 0.9-m.-by-1.5-m. (3 ft.-by-5 ft.) chunk of whale crushed the roof of a Buick car 0.4 km. (a quarter of a mile) away. State Highway crews ended up burying various large pieces of whale after all.