NFPA Journal - September/October 2020 - 59

Weather conditions at the time were reported as
slight to no winds with patchy fog, two- to threefoot (0.6- to 0.9-meter) seas, and air and water
temperature about 65° F (18°C).
Of the 39 persons on board, six were crew
members. The vessel had three levels: the uppermost sun deck, containing the wheelhouse and
crew rooms; the main deck, which included the
salon and galley; and the lower deck within the
hull, which housed the passenger bunkroom and
shower room, as well as the engine room.
The bunkroom, where the 33 passengers and
one crew member were sleeping, had an emergency escape hatch located on the aft end, which
also exited to the salon. There were two smoke
alarms in the bunkroom, and they sounded.
A noise woke a crew member asleep in the
wheelhouse berth, and he got up to investigate.
He saw a fire at the aft end of the sun deck, rising
from the salon compartment below. The crewmember alerted and woke the crew. The captain
went to the radio to send a distress message to the
Coast Guard. Other crewmembers attempted to
enter the salon and the bunkroom below. Unable
to use the aft ladder, which was on fire, the crewmembers tried to gain access through a forward
window in the salon and galley compartment,
which was fully engulfed by fire at the aft end
and by thick smoke in the forward end. Unable
to open the window and overwhelmed by smoke,
crewmembers jumped overboard.
Two crewmembers and the captain swam to the
stern, reboarded the vessel, opened the hatch to
the engine room, and saw no fire. Access to the
salon through the aft doors was blocked by fire.
The crew launched a small skiff and picked up the
remaining two crewmembers in the water. The
crew then went to another vessel anchored nearby,
where the captain continued to radio for help,
while two crewmembers returned to the dive boat
to search for survivors around the burning hull.
Local Coast Guard and fire department boats
arrived on scene to extinguish the fire and conduct search and rescue. The vessel burned to the
waterline by morning and subsequently sank in
about 60 feet (18 meters) of water. The victims
ranged in age from 17 to 66 years. None of the victims was able to escape the boat.
This was the most severe of 19 catastrophic
multiple-death fires and explosions that occurred
in the US in 2019. Catastrophic multiple-death
fires are defined as a fire in a home that kills five
or more people, or a fire in a non-home structure
or non-structural property (vehicle and wildfires
are included) that kills three or more people.
The 17 fires and 2 explosions that occurred
in 2019 killed 116 people, including 15 children
under the age of six. Of those 19 incidents, seven
occurred in homes and accounted for 38 deaths,
including 11 children under the age of six. Nine

Catastrophic Multiple-Death Fires
and Explosions by Type in 2019
HOME FIRES
New York City
Date, Time of Alarm,
Number of Deaths
May, 1:30 a.m., 6 deaths (1
under age 6).
Number of Stories, Occupancy
Type, Construction Type
This was a seven-story apartment building of unprotected
ordinary construction. The
floor size was not reported.
The apartment contained six
rooms.
Smoke Alarm and Other
Protection Devices
There were smoke alarms
present but no information
was reported on coverage or
operation. There was no information reported on automatic
suppression equipment.
Fire Origin and Path
The fire broke out in a fifthfloor apartment in the kitchen.
The cause was undetermined.
Contributing Factors and
Victim Locations
No information on the victims'
locations was reported. In
addition, three civilians in the
building were injured.
Wisconsin
Date, Time of Alarm,
Number of Deaths
June, 6:20 a.m., 6 deaths (3
under age six).
Number of Stories, Occupancy
Type, Construction Type
This was a single-family home.
Smoke Alarm and Other
Protection Devices
No information was reported.
Fire Origin and Path
No information was reported.
Contributing Factors and
Victim Locations
No information was reported.
Nevada
Date, Time of Alarm,
Number of Deaths
December, 4:13 a.m., 6 deaths.
Number of Stories, Occupancy
Type, Construction Type
This was a three-story apartment building of unprotected
ordinary construction. The
floor size was not reported.
Smoke Alarm and Other
Protection Devices
There was a smoke alarm and
manual pull stations system
present and residents reported
that the manual alarm was
pulled but did not operate. Fire
officials reported there was no
sprinkler system present.
Fire Origin and Path
Fire officials quoted by the
media reported the fire began
in a first-floor apartment
kitchen and involved a stove
used for heat.

Contributing Factors and
Victim Locations
Five of the victims were found
inside the structure and
one victim who jumped was
located outside on the sidewalk. The height from which
this person jumped and the
location of the victims inside
was not reported. In addition,
13 occupants of the building
were injured.
New York
Date, Time of Alarm,
Number of Deaths
February, 1:32 a.m., 5 deaths (1
under age 6).
Number of Stories, Occupancy
Type, Construction Type
This was a two-and-a-halfstory, unprotected wood-frame
single-family home covering
625 square feet (58 square
meters) that was occupied by
six people.
Smoke Alarm and Other
Protection Devices
There were three smoke
alarms present. They did not
operate as the batteries had
been removed. There was no
automatic suppression system
present.
Fire Origin and Path
An occupant had been cooking
chicken wings in the first-floor
kitchen but did not turn off the
burner when they left. The fire
was contained to the kitchen
area, but heat and smoke
spread upstairs.
Contributing Factors and
Victim Locations
There was a delay in reporting the fire as one occupant
escaped and ran to a neighbor's home to call 911.
Illinois
Date, Time of Alarm, Number
of Deaths
April, 11:19 p.m., 5 deaths (3
under age 6).
Number of Stories, Occupancy
Type, Construction Type
This was a 980-square-foot
(91-square-meter) single-family manufactured home of
unprotected wood-frame
construction.
Smoke Alarm and Other
Protection Devices
There was no detection equipment or automatic suppression
equipment present.
Fire Origin and Path
The fire started in the living-room. Due to the ongoing
investigation and court case,
no other information could be
reported.
Contributing Factors and
Victim Locations
None reported.

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NFPA Journal - September/October 2020

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