Drypigment.net: From 1905 until Al Ringling’s passing in in 1916, Thomas G. Moses completed several designs for the Ringling Bros. grand circus spectacles. In 1912, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Went to Sterling to catch Ringling to collect $1,200.00. As I went to the tent to find Al Ringling, I discovered everyone watching a fire – a stable at least four blocks away. A spark was blown towards the tent, the top of which is prepared with paraffin to make it waterproof. It soon ignited from the sparks and in less than thirty minutes the big tent was destroyed.
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This article really emphasized the dangers of fire, especially back in the early 1900’s, citing, of course, the Iroquois Theatre Fire. Prior to the heavy regulation we see today, despite the existence of fire prevention and suppression methods, the use of them was very limited. However, following the tragedy of the Iroquois Theatre Fire, which saw over six hundred fatalities, regulations grew much stricter. After reading this article, I became more interested in the Iroquois Theatre Fire and actually did some additional research on it. I learned that following the fire, it was discovered that fire safety officials may have been offered free tickets to overlook the lack of safety features in the theatre, of which there were many. As a result of this, all the theatres in Chicago were closed for a whole of six weeks to be reinspected. Fire safety is a major concern not just in theatres, but in all buildings and structures in general. It is just unfortunate that it took a tragedy with over six hundred fatalities to bring fire safety to the forefront.
It kind of baffles me how reckless fire code enforcement was prior to events like the Chicago Iroquois Theatre fire or the Triangle Shirt Factory fire. I can understand how a tragedy could happen and then standards and laws are put in place to prevent that kind of event from happening again, but the fact that fires in theatres were happening frequently all over the United States in the late part of the 19th century and early part of the 20th century, and the fire safety measures were simply not being enforced really grinds my gears. We talked a lot about fire safety in Tech Management last year, including the large Ringling Brothers’ tent fire in Hartford and the Iroquois Theatre fire, and how many of these event did cause the requirements of certain safety features and rules – like egress regulations and push bars on exit doors. What gets me is that the people responsible for checking these safety features TOOK BRIBES and allowed hundreds of people to die and be injured. It is pretty revealing of the priorities the theatre industry often has. I’ll remember all these newspaper clipping of dead children the next time I see a light pointed at a softgood or someone standing on top of a ladder.
As the article says, venue fires are horrendous because of the death toll they create, but not altogether uncommon. The ringling fire was devastating and it was made worse by the flammable paraffin that was used to waterproof the tent. The burning paraffin dripped of the tent onto the occupants. Although ringling has since moved into arenas, and then since ceased operation, tent circuses still tour. Many of them avoid connecticut because there are so many laws in place from the time of the ringling fire, including having fire trucks on location. This overhead means that Connecticut does not often have tent circuses. This article also reminded me of the venue fire in Rhode Island that killed 100 people in 2003. The venue used flammable foam insulation as acoustic tiles and one of the doors was padlocked. The building went up quickly and there was only one way to escape. Most people in Rhode Island know someone who was hurt or killed in the nightclub fire. This is a real danger that should be taken into account.
Most of us are familiar with the Iroquois Theatre fire and its effect on theatre safety measures. That fact alone is sufficient to imply how awful the disaster really was; 116 years later, it is still a painful memory. Unfortunately, we are still learning about the importance of policy enforcement, and only too often do we skate past regulations and good practice in favor of what we would rather do. At the end of the day, there is no inconvenience that is worth a life, and certainly no one will argue with that. It is much easier to say that and mean it than to live it, however. About a year ago, the first year grad students went on a tour of Purnell with a fire safety officer, and he encouraged us to steal doorstops from underneath any door with an exit sign above it. Closed doors are critical to containing fires and helping people escape safely, but it is more convenient to keep certain doors propped, so they never stay shut for long.
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