On 9/19/1902 in Birmingham, Alabama the yell of “fire” in a church caused over 100 people to be trampled to death at the Shiloh Baptist Church around 9 o’clock after Booker T. Washington concluded his speech to the National Convention. The Shiloh Church was a large place of worship, with more than 2,000 people in attendance. Cries of “fight!” “fight!” was mistaken for “Fire,” and a deadly scramble to get out began.
On 9/19/1896 a Boston, Massachusetts firefighter “was severely injured while working at a fire when he fell a considerable distance after a wall collapsed at a fire that was several months earlier, in winter.”
On 9/19/1900 a Toledo, Ohio firefighter “died when he was crushed beneath falling walls during firefighting operations at Henry Rosen’s Junk Warehouse, Vance & 13th. Ten other firefighters were injured during this fire.
On 9/19/1905 in Toronto, Ontario a flour mill fire, killed a firefighter and injured two others. “Within 10 minutes after the firefighters got to work on the building the main floor collapsed, burring four of them.”
On 9/19/1936 a Louisville, Kentucky firefighter died “while working a dump fire on Ohio Street. He was overcome by yellow smoke coming from the fire. He was taken to the City Hospital and died there about one hour after entry to the hospital.”
On 9/19/1971 a Yardville, New Jersey firefighter died while he “was operating at dwelling fire involving the basement of the house. During the suppression efforts, an explosion occurred sending the roof into the air and collapsing the walls and floor. Four firefighters were injured, and one succumbed to the blaze.”
On 9/19/1984 a Shreveport, Louisiana firefighter “died as a result of critical burns sustained on September 17th when he was answering a call at the Dixie Cold Storage building for an anhydrous ammonia leak in the building. He and another firefighter were inside, a spark caused an explosion. The firefighter was unable to get out of the building. He was a member of the Hazardous Material Team.” Ammonia does not burn readily or sustain combustion, except under narrow fuel-to-air mixtures of 15–25% air. When mixed with oxygen (air), it burns with a pale yellowish-green flame. Note that the definition of flammable gas was designed to exclude ammonia gas. “A flammable gas (Division 2.1) means any material which is a gas at 20°C (68°F) or less and 101.3 kPa (14.7 psia) of pressure which (1) Is ignitable at 101.3 kPa (14.7 psia) when in a mixture of 13 percent or less by volume with air; or (2) Has a flammable range at 101.3 kPa (14.7 psia) with an air of at least 12 percent regardless of the lower limit. Except for aerosols…”
9/19/1994 Box- 447 was struck for Lawrence & Somerset Street Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “A total of eight alarms were struck in very quick order for the vacant Quaker Lace factory, located at 4th & Lehigh Ave. The building was 5 stories in height and measured 500 x 300 feet. The Box was struck at 2114 hours and the 8th Alarm at 2234. The fire also extended to 19 dwellings before being bought under control at 0021 hours.
On 9/19/1990 an early morning fire in a board and care facility in Bessemer, Alabama resulted in four deaths, and eleven residents were evacuated. “An inadequate water supply for an installed residential sprinkler system resulted in the system not operating properly illustrating important code enforcement lessons.”
On 9/19/1908 the Vallejo, California Navy Shipyard explosion of 250 gallons of gasoline on board a barge moored abreast the submarine Grampus and Pike killed two sailors.
On 9/19/1843 near Bayou Sara, Louisiana, on the Mississippi River, the Steamer Clipper Number 1 boiler exploded while backing out from her moorings at the landing that killed fourteen, nine others were injured and ten people were missing.