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History (notable fires and the impact they made)
While perusing the Jeopardy thread a question was asked about the Peshtigo fire. I got to thinking a little bit on some other fires and the impact they made on the fire service, prevention, building codes etc. So I thought perhaps a thread where such history can be readdressed, look back at some notable fires and give a brief synopsis and some of the impact the fire made.
All I ask is that if you contribute that you do give a synopsis of the fire and the impact and not just copy and post a link.
So, I'll start it off with the Peshtigo Fire of 1871.
On the night of Oct 8, 1871, there were two significant fires seperated by only a couple hundred miles, one is easily remembered, one is not. The Peshtigo fire occurred at the same time as the Great Chicago Fire, but the Peshtigo Fire experienced about 5 times the life loss as the Chicago fire. (1200 to 2400 people perished)
Peshtigo was a small logging town at the time of the fire with sawdust on the streets, wooden buildings and boardwalks. The summer of 1871 was one of the driest on record and conditions were ripe for a fire. The cause isn't exactly known, but about 9 pm on Oct 8, 1871 the fire reached the Town of Peshtigo. The fire was so intense that people seeminly burst into flames while trying to run to the river, some died from asphyxiation. The fire blew up so bad that there was accounts of a fire tornado with winds so intense that the fire jumped the bay of Green Bay and started fires on the other side of the bay. (present day Door County to Green Bay) The fire eventually went out when it was stopped by the waters of Green Bay and rain finally extinguished the fire. The Town of Peshtigo lost 800 people (a mass grave holds about 350 victims who could not be identified), about half the population with many other lives lost from surrounding communities.
Impact
Along with the Chicago Fire, Fire Prevention Week was incorporated to be held around the anniversaries of these fires. The use of sawdust on roads and the means of clearing brush for farmland was examined.
http://www.library.wisc.edu/etext/WIReader/WER2002-0.html
www.peshtigofire.info
All I ask is that if you contribute that you do give a synopsis of the fire and the impact and not just copy and post a link.
So, I'll start it off with the Peshtigo Fire of 1871.
On the night of Oct 8, 1871, there were two significant fires seperated by only a couple hundred miles, one is easily remembered, one is not. The Peshtigo fire occurred at the same time as the Great Chicago Fire, but the Peshtigo Fire experienced about 5 times the life loss as the Chicago fire. (1200 to 2400 people perished)
Peshtigo was a small logging town at the time of the fire with sawdust on the streets, wooden buildings and boardwalks. The summer of 1871 was one of the driest on record and conditions were ripe for a fire. The cause isn't exactly known, but about 9 pm on Oct 8, 1871 the fire reached the Town of Peshtigo. The fire was so intense that people seeminly burst into flames while trying to run to the river, some died from asphyxiation. The fire blew up so bad that there was accounts of a fire tornado with winds so intense that the fire jumped the bay of Green Bay and started fires on the other side of the bay. (present day Door County to Green Bay) The fire eventually went out when it was stopped by the waters of Green Bay and rain finally extinguished the fire. The Town of Peshtigo lost 800 people (a mass grave holds about 350 victims who could not be identified), about half the population with many other lives lost from surrounding communities.
Impact
Along with the Chicago Fire, Fire Prevention Week was incorporated to be held around the anniversaries of these fires. The use of sawdust on roads and the means of clearing brush for farmland was examined.
http://www.library.wisc.edu/etext/WIReader/WER2002-0.html
www.peshtigofire.info
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Art "ChiefReason" Goodrich on
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John:
While I was looking up some of the more significant multiple fatality fires in the U.S., I came across this one. This fire is credited with requiring doors to open out, unlocked during working hours and adequate routes of escape. Inspections would improve after this fire. Check it out here: http://www.csun.edu/~ghy7463/mw2.html
The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911.
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Permalink Reply by Loyd Dittfurth on
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What about the mgm grand fire in Las Vegas. We learned alot about cheap construction with that one.
http://fire.co.clark.nv.us/(S(rh2qxk45uyrv1l552wpiyz45))/MGM.aspx
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Permalink Reply by Jason Hoevelmann on
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Iroquois Theater Fire, I believe in 1903. Killed over 600 people. Exit doors locked and barred, flammable and combustible finishes, over crowded and no lit exits. Was built to be "fire proof", which it didn't burn down, it just wasn't "death proof."
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Permalink Reply by David Dionne on
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The Iroquois Theatre Fire occurred on December 30, 1903, in Chicago, Illinois. It is the deadliest theater fire and the deadliest single-building fire in United States history. A total of 602 people died as a result of the fire.The theater, billed as "Absolutely Fireproof", was occupied with 1,924 people who had crowded in to see a production of "Mr. Blue Beard" starring Eddie Foy.
Mr. Hart said the investigation showed that the fire was sparked by an arc light which ignited scenery curtains. An asbestos fire curtain was dropped on the stage, but was snagged on the way down and stopped about 10 feet above the stage, which allowed toxic smoke and flames to flow into the auditorium.
Once fire spread into the seating area, all lighting in the theater was lost. Mr. Hart said that 602 people perished in the blaze, most from crowd-crush, and another 250 theater-goers were injured. The fire was brought under control in about 15 minutes by responding firefighters.
IMPACT Some of the changes made to building codes following the Iroquois Theater fire included the use of steel fire curtains, independent lighting systems for stairs and corridors, and requirements to keep passageways free of obstructions.The Iroquois fire prompted widespread implementation of the panic bar, first invented in the United Kingdom following the Victoria Hall disaster. Panic exit devices are now required by building codes for high-occupancy spaces and were mass manufactured in the US following the Fire by the Von Duprin company (now Ingersoll Rand).[
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Permalink Reply by Reg Mathis on
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Probably one of the better known historical fires, but one that is of interest to me because I have visited the site multiple times.
On December 7th, 1946, some time around 3:00 AM, fire broke out on the 3rd floor of the Winecoff Hotel in downtown Atlanta, GA. This fast moving fire resulted in the deaths of 119 people and is still the deadliest hotel fire in American history. When originaly constructed in 1913, it was touted as being "absolutely fireproof". The 15 story building had no fire alarms, no fire escapes and no sprinkler or standpipe systems.
IMPACT:
By the end of 1950, every state in the union had adopted some form of fire code addendum addressing mandatory requirements for fire escapes, fire alarms and sprinkler systems.
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Permalink Reply by John Crabbe on
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The MGM Grand fire occurred on November 21, 1980 at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino. While the fire primarily damaged the second floor casino and adjacent restaurants, most of the deaths were caused by smoke inhalation on the upper floors of the hotel. Openings in vertical shafts (elevators and stairwells) and seismic joints allowed toxic smoke to spread to the top floor.
The disaster led to the general publicizing of the fact that during a building fire, smoke inhalation is a more serious threat than the flames thereof. 75 died from smoke and carbon monoxide, 4 from smoke alone, 3 from burns and smoke, only one 1 from burns alone, and 1 massive skull trauma, caused by jumping from a high window.
The casino and restaurants were not protected by a fire sprinkler system because they were exempt from rules requiring fire sprinklers in areas occupied 24 hours per day. Clark County building inspectors granted the exemption—despite the opposition of the fire marshal—reasoning that a fire would be quickly noticed by occupants and contained with portable fire extinguishers.
The MGM Grand led to improved building codes including sprinklers and alarm systems for hotels.
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I don't remeber the year or the state but what about the forest fire on Storm King Mountain? I think there were something like 14 firefighters that lost their lives when the fire chased them to the top of the mountain with little to no warning of changing direction. I wanna say it was in southern California but I'm not sure. Maybe someone else may know about this one.
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Thank you Loyd. Storm King and 14 brothers lost was all I could remember.
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USS Forrestal July 29, 1967
July 29, a Zuni rocket accidentally fired from an F-4 Phantom. The missile streaked across the deck into a 400 gallon belly fuel tank on a parked A-4D Skyhawk. The ruptured tank spew highly flammable JP-5 fuel onto the deck which ignited spreading flames over the flight deck under other fully loaded aircraft ready for launch. The ensuing fire caused ordinance to explode and other rockets to ignite. Spread by the wind, the flames engulfed the aft end of the stricken ship turning the flight deck into a blazing inferno.. Berthing spaces immediately below the flight deck became death traps for fifty men, while other crewmen were blown overboard by the explosion. But secondary fires below deck took another 12 hours to contain. The damage and loss of life was catastrophic.
One hundred and thirty-four men had lost their lives
Initial and trained firefighting crews were wiped out with the first explosion. While the carrier was equipped with AFFF at the time, seawater, also used by FF teams washed the foam away, increasing the fires duration and spreading burning fuels below decks through holes created by the explosions.
Impact
All crewmembers were trained in firefighting and damage control. All ships equipped with AFFF and remote operated firefighting controls to activate such systems.
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Permalink Reply by Capt.Alex Arnold on
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A retired member of our fire department is also a retired sailor. He was on board the USS Forrestal when this happened. He says still to this day he has nightmares about that fire. It was a defining moment for Damage Control onboard US Ships.
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Cocoanut Grove November 28, 1942
Was a nightclub in Boston, Massachusetts. On November 28, 1942, the nightclub burned in what remains the deadliest nightclub fire in United States history, killing 492 people and injuring hundreds more. It is also the second-worst single-building fire in American history; only the Iroquois Theater fire in Chicago in 1903 killed more (602).
Decorated in a Casablanca tropical style, the restaurant, bars, and lounges inside were fitted out with flammable paper palm trees, cloth draperies covering the ceiling, flammable furniture, and other flimsy decorations, some of which obscured exit signs. As is common in panic situations, many patrons attempted to exit through the main entrance, the same way they had come in. However, the building's main entrance was a single revolving door, immediately rendered useless as the panicked crowd scrambled for safety. Bodies piled up behind both sides of the revolving door, jamming it. Other avenues of escape were similarly useless: side doors had been welded shut to prevent people from leaving without paying their bills. A plate glass window, which could have been smashed for escape, was instead boarded up and unusable as an emergency exit. Other unlocked doors opened inwards, rendering them useless against the crush of people trying to escape
Impact
The fire led to a reform of fire codes and safety standards across the country which banned flammable decorations and inward-swinging exit doors, required exit signs to be visible at all times, and stated that revolving doors used for egress must either be flanked by at least one normal, outward-swinging door, or retrofitted to permit the individual doors to fold flat to permit free-flowing traffic in a panic situation.
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