Station Night Club Fire: 100 Killed in 2003 Infamous Blaze - Research Paper

Introduction

The Station Night Club Fire is one of the worst fire incidences in American history, and it occurred on 20th February 2003 in West Warwick, killing100 people (Providence 2018). Many people had crowded on the cub enjoying the band Great White. Just after, at the start of the event, Daniel Biechele, the tour manager of the band, set off polytechnics and, in the process, hit the foam soundproof on the ceiling of the club, triggering an ignition. Within a short time, the building was filled with smoke as crowed dispersed for safety. Over 200 people were injured in the process (Gould, 2019). As a result, there have been questions on the efficiency of the fire control techniques in the buildings as well as the capability of the extinguishers to save more out of such occasions.

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The incident is recorded as the fourth destructive nightclub fire in the USA, which influenced strict adherence to fire codes across the country. As a result of the incident, NFPA established robust fire codes to avoid such cases; the codes, therefore, have significantly impacted the way modern construction is carried out. Since then, fire codes have changed with a significant focus on public safety and fire control operations. Based on the incident, it was realized that human behavior at a crucial moment plays an important role. Therefore the codes were designed to ensure that all the behaviors or operations during a fire incident are addressed. The tight regulations established through fire and construction codes are strict and require all members of the public to follow. The regulations were drastically enhanced; major areas that began to adopt the new codes were the schools, residents, and the urban centers. This paper, therefore, researches the station night club fire and how the fire codes changed as a result of the incident. This research is a comprehensive study seeking to address different issues of the subject.

Background

The underlying facts concerning the nightclub, as well as its operations, contributed to the incident. The building was old since it was constructed in the year 1946, and before the incidents, it had been redesign or refurbished several times because of changes in ownership. The degree of fire spread was stimulated because the constructions were made from a single-story wood with approximate measurements of 4,480 ft2 (Gould, 2019). The customers could enter through the main entrance located in the northern part of the structure, even though three were other points of entrance and exits, very few attendances were aware of it because the adjustments of the structure to the western side was an extension to the stage which was assumed to be VIP and performers entry point. On the main entrance, there were large windows, and another entrance was located on the eastern side of the building and situated in the kitchen. It was noted that a few of the attendance and the staff members knew about other exits. At that time, no fire codes were regulating the use of pyrotechnics, which in this case lead to intense flames that were enough to ignite the insulation surrounding the walls of the building. As soon as the ceiling got fire, the spread was accelerated by the wooden frames. According to the final report of the incident, it was reported that the wooden materials of the structure facilitated approximately 95% of the fire spread (Gould, 2019).

Fire Codes Existing Before and After the Station Nightclub Fire

Since the construction of the building, various model codes have been established, amended, and adopted to ensure safety measures are observed. There building regulations that would have helped during the event and reduce the amount of destruction and the number of people who died in the event of a fire. Despite changes influenced by the event, other fire codes seemed to have been neglected by the constructors of the station nightclub.

Two well-known fire codes existed before the event: The International Building Codes (IBC) 2003 and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 2003. The management would have implemented these codes effectively to avoid the extends of the damage. Both IBC and NFPA provide rules and regulations concerning the location of the building, the size, Hight, and departmental partitions. IBC restricts the area covered by Group A-2 building to 6,000 ft2 (Allen, Luco & Halchuk,2015), and on the other hand, NFPA restricts assembly occupancy structures that accommodate >300 and <100 people to 5,500 ft2 (NFPA, 2015). The Station nightclub was 4,484 ft2, and the basement measured -840 ft2. From this data, the building did not comply with the regulatory rules of occupancy (Gould, 2019).

Change of Fire codes

Use of Pyrotechnics in Live Performance

As a result of the incident, NFPA 1126 established stringent regulations on the application of pyrotechnic during a live performance for the safety of the people and protect the property against fire outbreak (NFPA, 2015). The Station Nightclub fire was a result of failure to follow the rules and regulations about the use of pyrotechnic materials during a live performance.

The outcomes of the pyrotechnic exacerbated the degree of fire spread. The material can under an exothermic self-control process several times, resulting in the production of light, intense heat, gas, or smoke. Daniel used three sets of the material, which today is nor recommended by the law. In modern society, fire and safety codes limit the use of pyrotechnics, and there are various requirements and restrictions for its usage. The law requires an operator to submit a designed plan that entails the data, location, and time of usage. Also, a qualification of the operator is required within 24 hours before the event.

Egress Windows Exit Points

After the incident, the point of agreement windows, as well as exit systems in a building, was addressed. As part of the incident, this issue significantly contributed to the destruction witnessed in a nightclub fire. One of the worst parts of the insistent is that the firefighters were bottlenecked within the building as they were trying to exit. Apart from lack of fire extinguishers equipment is in the building, lack of adequate and well-labeled exits contributed to the event of a fire; this would have facilitated fast evacuation if the exit system was to the modern standard. Another issue was the lack of adequate aggress.

As a result of these issues, fire and construction codes have established strict rules for a building to address sufficient exit systems and emergency access points. The constructors are required to build a standard and adequate exit system and emergency access points to assist in the evacuation process in case of a fire incident. The codes also require the management to conduct a regular check on the exit and emergency systems to avoid saver liabilities as a result if failure. The buildings are required to have sufficient illumination of the exit points. The rules reflect on the incidences of the Station Nightclub as it had five exits which were not known by all the people inside the building and a single, double swing access point as the main entrance.

Changes on Structural Requirement

As a result of the fire that destroyed the Station Nightclub influenced the magnitude of responses from different organs of the government as well as non-governmental agencies such as code developmental organizations. Several actions on the structure of abuilding were redesigned to address the issues that occurred during the incident (Providence, 2018).

Several proposals that were temporarily implemented and later made as permeant guidelines were established. NFPA, in response, developed cautious interim amendments to address life-safety concerns. One of the structural requirements for the new tall buildings since the incident is required to be constructed in concrete and steel to reduce fire risks.

Other considerations include the structural design, light, means of aggress, fire protection, and interior furnishing materials (JONES, 2019). Constructors are required to comply with the law and ensure that all these structures meet the minimum fire code requirements to avoid serious liabilities ac consequence of failure.in the modern construction, the buildings constructors are required to install fire prevention equipment's and energy conservation systems as part of the structural designs, failure to address this issues in the structure, the government will not validate the instruction.

Interior Furnishing

Rules and regulations governing the interior furnishing of a building were changed to reduce the risk of fire. The insulation materials used in the construction of the Nightclub contributed to the spread of fire. In the modern world, the NFPA and IBC provide the use of furnishing materials; for instance, chapter 10 of NFPA 5000 and chapter 8 of IBC provides that constructors -should use flame-tested materials for furnishing to reduce chances of utilizing highly flammable materials. Furthermore, chapter 16 of the NFPA code requires the use of wood paneling, beadboard, and sheathing boards that have flame spread degree of >=75 and smoke formation index of =>450 (NFPA, 2015). However, if the building is well equipped with sufficient sprinklers, NFPA allows up to 200 fame spread index (Nikolaou & Gilsanz, 2016).

Besides, IBC controls the regulation of plastic materials for furnishing operations. The code requires constructors to use foam plastics with a flame spread index of 75 and below. They must be well labeled with a smoke formation index of >= 450 (NFPA, 2015). For the case of the station nightclub, the interior furnishing consisted of hardwood materials, beadboard, gypsum paint, ceramic tiles, wafer board, and most of the paneling was made from plywood which has a flame spread of 70-160 (NFPA, 2015).

Installation of Automatic Sprinklers, Extinguishers and Fire Alarms

After the incident, it was reported that the Station Nightclub did not have fire sprinklers, fire alarms, and extinguishers. This equipment would have helped to control the situation and suppression of fire from spreading. Therefore, codes were changed to address this issue by establishing strict regulations for the installation of automatic sprinklers, fire alarms, and extinguishers (White & Delichatsios, 2015). NFPA 5000 required new buildings under group A-2 to include sufficient automatic sprinklers as long as the following specifications are exceeded.

The occupancy building should accommodate 300 people

The fire should be situated on other places different from the exit discharge point of the building

The fire must be > 12,000 ft2

Conclusion

Since the fire incident in the Station Nightclub, several changes on fire codes top place to address most of the questions that were raised after the event. Different agencies that investigated the scene found that the building lacked to incorporate the essential fire regulations protocols. It lacked fire prevention equipment and exit system, which are the topmost vital factors of safety in a building. Many people died, as a result, the existing fire codes were amended, and others establish further safety concerns.

The code of the installation of automatic sprinklers, fire alarms, extinguishers, and sufficient exit systems are some of the trending changes codes that occurred after the incident. Also, strict supervision of construction was established, requiring building designers to incorporate new features in a building as well as provide limited measurements for the construction in terms of size, partitions, location, and height.

References

Allen, T. I., Luco, N., & Halchuk, S. (2015, July). Exploring risk-t...