EDIT; It looks like I am preaching this, which I am not intending to do at all.
Initially I thought about putting this in ‘Everything Else’ but I consider it something worthwhile to lifestyle and that plenty of guys on here are traveling in areas of the world or they are planning to where this issue is very real.
I am talking about fires in nightclubs.
Notable fires; Station fire, Kiss Nightclub Brazil, Perm (Russia).
All of these had high casualty rates with in excess of 100 dying. You would think that these people were either incapacitated from drink, drugs or were incinerated from the fire.
Apparently what causes the most deaths is smoke, lack of oxygen and crushing.
Smoke
When you’re in a nightclub the things you don’t see can be the most worrying things. Sound proofing which is not rated to resist fire can catch alight from small sparks in an instant.
This stuff when burned gives of toxic smoke, one of which is cyanide. Coupled with the high concentrations of carbon dioxide/monoxide and a lack of oxygen in the air, you’re going to be lights out in under a minute or depending upon circumstances, knocked out almost immediately from inhaling burning air.
Your lungs and throat are basically burned from the inside and you will most likely go into shock.
Some data regarding some of the noxious gases present in fires;
Carbon Monoxide (ppm)
-400 Nausea after 1-2 hours
-1000 Difficulty in movement. Death after 2 hours
-2000 Death after 45 minutes
-3000 Death after 30 minutes
-4000 Rapid collapse, unconsciousness and death within minutes
Oxygen vitiation %
-21 Normal concentration of air
-10-12 Nausea and vomiting, exertion impossible, paralysis in motion
-6-8 Collapse and unconsciousness
-6 or below Death in 6-8 minutes
-2-3 Death within 45 seconds
Hydrogen cyanide (ppm)– Materials which contain nitrogen. Polymeric materials such as wool, polyurethane foam, polyacrylonitrille
45-54Tolerate for ½ hou110-135 Death after ½ hour
45-55181 Death after 10 minutes
45-56280 Immediate death
---------------------
Now you’re wondering why people don’t immediately leave? Why do they get caught up in the mad dash to get away from the fire?
Unless the fire is an instant event from a bomb, which this post is not about, people ignore it and are quite fascinated with it. Think of all the times you have interacted with fire.
-BBQs
-Fire place in home
-Wood burner
-Open camp fire
-Bonfire
Think of a nightclub like an oven and you’re the chicken inside. The heat needs to get going, it needs fuel to keep going. The people observing the fire don’t even realise the fire is spreading as evidenced in Stardust Disco, Perm, Station Inn and Kiss nightclub.
Security tries and fails to put these fires out and by the time everybody realises the fire is already above them and the smoke is descending on them which burns their lungs, reduces visibility and starts to choke them.
What do you guys do then? You attempt to get out and that’s what everyone else is doing. You’re now trapped in a box which has just gone from 25-30 degrees Celsius to 100+ in seconds and is still climbing AND you’re nowhere near the exit you want to be at.
Whilst these nightclub fires showed up a lot of legal failings and over crowding, there are hundreds out there in South America, Eastern Europe and Asia, hell even the western world where your safety wont be guaranteed as a result of poor staff training, poor fire safety equipment and flammable materials.
Go to any club in your local city or town and look up, how much material is hanging off the ceilings and walls? All of those things are fuel for fire and will go up faster than you think.
Station fire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY59mR44TLs
Stardust: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeLKVFC27-0
Once a fire is reaching ceiling level and you’re still watching it, you’ve already cut your chances of survival by half.
Further to places outside of the western world. Perm in Russia had a lot of victims pulled out and just placed on the freezing snow, these people had injuries and died as a result, alone and thinking god knows what.
I dont want to be put on the freezing ground and nobody giving a fuck. The video of the club is on youtube and some absolute smoke show women were just "plonked" on the snow to die.
The Brazil fire was meant to change things but like in Russia, bribes are easily paid to officials to keep it running. Nightclub owners don’t really give a damn about you as along as things run smoothly.
I’m not saying you should avoid nightclubs, hell I’ve been in a lot of questionable places and still go but if you see a fire in one of these clubs, get the fuck out ASAP.
Check for exits other than the main entrance, this is one thing you can increase your chances. Most people leave via the entrance they came in and will actually ignore other exit points, this is a proven fact.
If you want to look up more you can google "Human behaviour in fires".
Initially I thought about putting this in ‘Everything Else’ but I consider it something worthwhile to lifestyle and that plenty of guys on here are traveling in areas of the world or they are planning to where this issue is very real.
I am talking about fires in nightclubs.
Notable fires; Station fire, Kiss Nightclub Brazil, Perm (Russia).
All of these had high casualty rates with in excess of 100 dying. You would think that these people were either incapacitated from drink, drugs or were incinerated from the fire.
Apparently what causes the most deaths is smoke, lack of oxygen and crushing.
Smoke
When you’re in a nightclub the things you don’t see can be the most worrying things. Sound proofing which is not rated to resist fire can catch alight from small sparks in an instant.
This stuff when burned gives of toxic smoke, one of which is cyanide. Coupled with the high concentrations of carbon dioxide/monoxide and a lack of oxygen in the air, you’re going to be lights out in under a minute or depending upon circumstances, knocked out almost immediately from inhaling burning air.
Your lungs and throat are basically burned from the inside and you will most likely go into shock.
Some data regarding some of the noxious gases present in fires;
Carbon Monoxide (ppm)
-400 Nausea after 1-2 hours
-1000 Difficulty in movement. Death after 2 hours
-2000 Death after 45 minutes
-3000 Death after 30 minutes
-4000 Rapid collapse, unconsciousness and death within minutes
Oxygen vitiation %
-21 Normal concentration of air
-10-12 Nausea and vomiting, exertion impossible, paralysis in motion
-6-8 Collapse and unconsciousness
-6 or below Death in 6-8 minutes
-2-3 Death within 45 seconds
Hydrogen cyanide (ppm)– Materials which contain nitrogen. Polymeric materials such as wool, polyurethane foam, polyacrylonitrille
45-54Tolerate for ½ hou110-135 Death after ½ hour
45-55181 Death after 10 minutes
45-56280 Immediate death
---------------------
Now you’re wondering why people don’t immediately leave? Why do they get caught up in the mad dash to get away from the fire?
Unless the fire is an instant event from a bomb, which this post is not about, people ignore it and are quite fascinated with it. Think of all the times you have interacted with fire.
-BBQs
-Fire place in home
-Wood burner
-Open camp fire
-Bonfire
Think of a nightclub like an oven and you’re the chicken inside. The heat needs to get going, it needs fuel to keep going. The people observing the fire don’t even realise the fire is spreading as evidenced in Stardust Disco, Perm, Station Inn and Kiss nightclub.
Security tries and fails to put these fires out and by the time everybody realises the fire is already above them and the smoke is descending on them which burns their lungs, reduces visibility and starts to choke them.
What do you guys do then? You attempt to get out and that’s what everyone else is doing. You’re now trapped in a box which has just gone from 25-30 degrees Celsius to 100+ in seconds and is still climbing AND you’re nowhere near the exit you want to be at.
Whilst these nightclub fires showed up a lot of legal failings and over crowding, there are hundreds out there in South America, Eastern Europe and Asia, hell even the western world where your safety wont be guaranteed as a result of poor staff training, poor fire safety equipment and flammable materials.
Go to any club in your local city or town and look up, how much material is hanging off the ceilings and walls? All of those things are fuel for fire and will go up faster than you think.
Station fire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY59mR44TLs
Stardust: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeLKVFC27-0
Once a fire is reaching ceiling level and you’re still watching it, you’ve already cut your chances of survival by half.
Further to places outside of the western world. Perm in Russia had a lot of victims pulled out and just placed on the freezing snow, these people had injuries and died as a result, alone and thinking god knows what.
I dont want to be put on the freezing ground and nobody giving a fuck. The video of the club is on youtube and some absolute smoke show women were just "plonked" on the snow to die.
The Brazil fire was meant to change things but like in Russia, bribes are easily paid to officials to keep it running. Nightclub owners don’t really give a damn about you as along as things run smoothly.
I’m not saying you should avoid nightclubs, hell I’ve been in a lot of questionable places and still go but if you see a fire in one of these clubs, get the fuck out ASAP.
Check for exits other than the main entrance, this is one thing you can increase your chances. Most people leave via the entrance they came in and will actually ignore other exit points, this is a proven fact.
If you want to look up more you can google "Human behaviour in fires".