Great Balls of Fire! | 10 Question History Multiple Choice Quiz

Answer: Dublin, Ireland

This nightclub fire caused the deaths of 48 people and injury to 214 people. The Stardust Nightclub was a very popular disco located in Dublin, Ireland. The origin of the fire has never been proven, but it is known that an alarm was never sounded and the patrons were not informed when the fire was found.

They became aware of the fire only when the lights went out because the fire had spread into the ceiling. Many of the fire exits were padlocked or chained shut. In July of 1985, the song "They Never Came Home" was written and performed by Irish folk singer Christy Moore in remembrance of the event and the victims.

Answer: The Flying Wallendas

The world famous Flying Wallendas were performing their dangerous high-wire act when the circus tent caught fire. Because the tent had been waterproofed with a combination of paraffin and gasoline the fire spread rapidly and caused the the inferno to collapse on the audience.

At least 168 people died in this fire, some were burned while others were trampled to death. Not all the bodies were identified and a large number of the dead were children. Those who were not claimed were buried in an anonymous grave in the city of Hartford, Connecticut.

There are many photos of this fire and its aftermath. At the time a photo was published of the famous clown Emmett Kelly holding a water bucket which he had been using in a futile attempt to stop the fire.

This led to this event being known as "The Day the Clowns Cried".

Answer: The exits were locked

In the late afternoon of March 25,1911 in Manhattan, New York at least 146 people were killed when the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory caught fire. In an effort to keep their employees from stealing, the company had locked all the doors to the stairwells and exits.

The only fire escape from the building collapsed under the weight of those trying to escape, killing all of those on these flimsy stairs. Almost all the dead were young female immigrants who had come to America looking for a new life. Because the factory was located on the eighth, ninth, and tenth floor of the building, the employees either burned to death or jumped to their deaths.

The next time you feel the urge to complain about your job remember this: these girls were working 52 hours a week, without breaks, for the princely wage of between 7-12 dollars a week.

The cause of the fire was never proven. This event did lead to new safety regulations in factories which included laws banning the locking of exits.

Answer: The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire

Jack London was referring to what he saw in the aftermath of the San Francisco Earthquake and Fire in 1906. The earthquake struck at 05:12 a.m. and could be felt from Oregon to Nevada and up and down most of the Pacific coast of the U.S. The fire that ensued leveled most of the buildings that had been left standing after the earthquake. Over 3,000 people were killed and this incident is remembered as one of the worst natural disasters to hit North America. Over 3/4 of the remaining population was left homeless.

This disaster and the ensuing fire helped pass new laws concerning building construction and fire safety for the state of California. The last part of Jack London's statement says it all, "San Francisco is gone".

Answer: By a campfire

In 2003 during a period of wild-fires a hiker lost in the woods tried lighting a fire hoping that someone would find him. Although the hiker was found, his campfire started a wildfire which consumed 280,000 acres of land and destroyed almost 3000 buildings and homes.

This fire, which occurred in San Diego County, California was fueled by the Santa Ana Winds and a lack of rainfall in the area. The smoke from this fire forced the closure of of the air traffic control center for both Los Angeles and San Diego shutting down all commercial air traffic to a large portion of California.

This fire killed 15 people and caused over two billion dollars worth of damage.

Answer: Hong Kong

Built in 1845, the Happy Valley Racecourse was a premier horse racing track located in Hong Kong. On February 26, 1918 over 600 people lost their lives when this structure caught fire and the wooden structure was quickly engulfed by flames. The cause of the fire was never determined, but the high death count was due to a lack of exits in the building and inadequate fire fighting equipment.

The entire structure was a loss and remains one of the deadliest man-made disasters in Hong Kong history. The track was rebuilt in 1995 and is widely rumored to be haunted by the ghosts of those who died in this fire.

Answer: The Cocoanut Grove

The Cocoanut Grove fire was one of the worst single-building fires in the history of the U.S. The building's capacity was 490 but it is estimated that there were as many as 1,000 patrons crammed inside. When the abundant flammable decorations ignited, panic set in.

The front exit consisted of a single revolving door which became stuck almost immediately with the bodies of those who had futilely attempted to exit the same way they had come in. Ironically, the owner of club, Barney Welansky, was recovering from a heart attack at the Massachusetts General Hospital, the same hospital that most of the victims were taken to.

He was later found guilty of 19 counts of manslaughter and was given a sentence of 12-15 years. He was released from prison 4 years later after receiving a gubernatorial pardon, just 9 weeks before he died of cancer.

This horrible accident was instrumental in the enactment and enforcement of new safety laws for all public buildings.

Answer: True

This Canadian tragedy occurred from a discarded cigarette. The children were sitting in the balcony watching a comedy called "Get'Em Young" when the fire started. The doors from the balcony opened inward and the panicking children tried to get out by pushing the doors instead of pulling. Of the 78 children who died, two died from the flames, 12 were crushed to death and the other 64 died of smoke inhalation.

After this tragedy laws were passed that prohibited anyone under the age of 16 from going to the cinema.

This law remained in effect until 1961.

Answer: Arson investigator

John Orr was a fire captain, arson investigator, and author that worked for the Glendale, California Fire Department. For twenty years the Los Angeles area was home to thousands of arson fires that killed four people and caused millions of dollars in damage.

He often started multiple fires at one time and after the fires were put out he was called in to decide if it was a case of arson. He was finally caught in 1991 partly because he described one of his deadly fires in a novel he wrote called "Points of Origin".

He was convicted of murder and arson and given a life sentence without possibility of parole.

Answer: False

These deadly and expensive brush fires occurred throughout Tasmania, Australia. In one day over 100 separate fires were recorded. An unusually wet rainy season caused an abundance of plant growth. When it was followed by one of the worst droughts in history, dry grass, twigs and other tinder were lying all over the ground.

These fires left over 60 people dead and almost 1,000 people injured. 60,000 farm animals were killed and over 7,000 people were left homeless. Estimates at the time put monetary damages in the area of $40,000,000 Australian dollars (1967 value).