Still, this is not the full extent of the catastrophe that's etched in history as the Great Smog of London. What was life like then, and did the smog's departure really mean an end to the problem?

A London policeman wearing a mask for protection against the thick fog which hit most of the country and turned to smog in the city on Jan. 1, 1962. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images) London's poor ...

The British smog crisis peaked with the infamous “Great Smog of London” in 1952, prompting the Clean Air Act of 1956 which prohibited coal burning in houses and factories, establishing smoke ...