 In the early afternoon of Friday, 11 March 1597, a consignment of gunpowder barrels was being unloaded by crane from a lighter (a barge) moored at the dock close to Wood Quay.Shortly after one o'clock, as the wooden crane was shifting four barrels of gunpowder towards the quay, 140 barrels of gunpowder that had been resting on the river side were engulfed by a massive explosion, transforming the quayside into a scene of devastation.The crane and crane house, which were sited by the barrels, were torn asunder, and the force of the blast was felt far across the city.