The Smogs of London
“A London smog is brown, reddish-yellow, or greenish. It darkens more than a white fog, has a smoky, or sulphurous smell and leads to a choking sensation. A white cloth spread out on the ground rapidly turns dirty, and particles of soot attach themselves to every exposed object”.
R Russell, London Fogs (London: 1880), p. 6.
Deaths were a common result either through the effects of pollution on weakened lungs or through accidents caused by the inability to see dangers because of the dense murk.