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The explosion happened one mid-morning at the Swan Custard Factory A dust-cloud of cornstarch was ignited, blowing off the roof of the building, injuring nine workers and killing one When the fire engines arrived, the water they used to put out the fire turned to custard when mixed with all the powder and heat It flowed down the neighbouring streets, where it was eaten by pigeons and little children who ran out after it with tea cups to fill    One unfortunate girl started to choke after drinking two cups of the liquid Her father pounded her stomach until she threw up two human teeth, a fingernail and a blue stud earring shaped like a butterfly These had belonged to Gloria-Jean Lewis, the one casualty of the explosion   The owner of the factory was Alfred Swan III, grandson of the original Alfred Swan, a pharmacist who had invented instant egg-free custard powder after his wife had an allergic reaction at a dinner party The original Alfred Swan and his wife were unsure which was the offending ingredient until she fainted and broke out in a rash a few days later after eating a boiled egg No one knew what had caused her to suddenly be unable to stomach eggs An untold part of the story, absent from the official histories of the custard company, is that she subsequently ate a whole jar of pickled eggs in an attempt to kill herself She was found by her husband beside the empty jar, and was sent to an institution where staff were given strict instructions not to feed her any eggs, or place any eggs in her surroundings   The custard powder made in Alfred Swan’s factory was simply cornstarch, yellow colouring and a little flavouring to make it look and taste a bit eggy The instructions suggested it could be mixed with either milk or water It was mainly sold in bulk to boarding schools where children were hit, and to little corner shops where it sat on dusty shelves, and was bought by old