Death by Gas Chamber? http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097 acole799 I'm writing a Holocaust novel and I'm having trouble finding out about how the whole "death in a gas chamber" works. I understand that carbon monoxide was commonly used, but would it cause a painful death? Would the victims suffocate or what? Please help! Fri, 25 Nov 2011 17:42:06 +0000 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_841112 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_841112 Nike Lennard No, it was carbon monoxyd only in the first time and not in the gas chambers. It was considered to be too ineffective, so they changed to Zyklon-B, which contains hydrogen cyanide. The gas chambers were disguised as shower-rooms and the people were told they would be treated against lice. When they had been brought in doors would have been shuttted and afterwards the Zyklon B was filled in pipes, that lead to the gas chambers. There is a good article in wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zyklon_B Fri, 25 Nov 2011 20:04:53 +0000 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_842405 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_842405 Grand Poobah Answering this completely would entail a complete book by itself. However, let me offer a few items and then suggest further research. Originally, Jews and other undesirables were simply shot. It wasn't remotely efficient, and was, ironically, considered rather barbaric, not for the victims but for the "poor soldiers" who were tasked with the job. Himmler observed one such action, either fainted or nearly fainted, and then commented about how brave the soldiers were to hold up so well while doing such an onerous, but necessary, job. As things moved along, mobile gas chambers were tried. They were basically buses that were sealed, and the exhaust was discharged into the compartment. They worked...to a point. The problems included simple things like...as people died the deficated, and since they were wearing clothes, that made a real mess, and the clothes couldn't be sent back to Germany for continued use. It also used gasoline, which was always in short supply since Germany had no oil of its own. It also meant you had to drive people "somewhere" and that seemed to be a waste of time. The early fixed gas chambers, which were disguised as showers, eliminated the clothing issue but still required too much time. In short, they were terribly inefficient, and there were far too many Jews that needed to be dealt with. Finally, Höess took a serious look at the problem and, after some experimentation, came up with the ultimate solution...Zyklon-B. For research, I suggest the following sites.... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zyklon_B This site has been reviewed by members of the Germany work group and is considered accurate. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_monoxide_poisoning This is not a part of the Germany work group scope, but does contain valid information about the issue in general. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Solution This article has been reviewed by the work group, and several of us have made changes to it. It is a primary stub, and on the right side you can find links to all the specifics, including a whole list of other resources. Another good description can be found in Exodus, by Leon Uris. He details the actions regarding one of his main characters, Dov, working in a camp. Fri, 25 Nov 2011 20:06:39 +0000 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_842422 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_842422 acole799 Thanks to both of you! I need to work on my research skills... Sat, 26 Nov 2011 03:57:12 +0000 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_847066 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_847066 acole799 Aha! That Zyklon-B Wikipedia article was exactly what I needed! An extra thanks to you, Nike Lennard. Sat, 26 Nov 2011 03:59:29 +0000 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_847097 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_847097 ellaluna If you can get ahold of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Inside-Gas-Chambers-Sonderkommando-Auschwitz/dp/0745643833" rel="nofollow">this</a> book, which is in the form of a long interview with a man who was a sonderkommando (a prisoner who was detailed to work in the gas chambers) in Auschwitz, it would probably be a pretty good place to start. I found it in a bookshop and read a bit of it, and it was very detailed, and harrowing. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 21:51:47 +0000 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_952309 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/historical-fiction/threads/43097?page=1#forum_thread_comment_952309