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Roberto Henry Ebelt

Dois incêndios terríveis marcam 1903 e 2013. 100 anos passaram e parece que não aprendemos nada com as tragédias alheias.

No dia 30 de dezembro de 1903, em Chicago, o Iroquois Theater, com mais de 2.000 pessoas assistindo a uma revista musical, pegou fogo. De maneira bem semelhante ao inferno da desgraçada boate, a infraestrutura do Iroquois Theater, em Chicago, contra incêndios era inexistente.

Sistemas de abertura de portas PARA FORA do teatro não havia (como na desgraçada boate) e as portas "abriam" para dentro do inferno.

PANIC BARS

PANIC BARS são sistemas de aberturas de portas acionados por quem se encostar na barra.

Origem das PANIC BARS:

Following the events of the Victoria Hall disaster in Sunderland, England in 1883 in which more than 180 children died because a door had been bolted at the bottom of a stairwell, the British government began legal moves to enforce minimum standards for building safety. This slowly led to the legal requirement that venues must have a minimum number of outward opening doors as well as locks which could be opened from the inside.

However these moves were not globally copied. For example in the United States, 605 people died in the Iroquois Theater Fire in Chicago in December 1903 because iron gates blocked exits.

As 180 crianças mortas em 1883 na Inglaterra não foram o suficiente para impedir o desastre do Iroquois Theater, porém as 605 vítimas do incêndio de Chicago tocaram os brios dos americanos.

Infelizmente, mais de 100 anos depois, no Brasil, as portas da maioria dos lugares públicos ainda não tem PANIC BARS (CRASH BARS). Você conhece alguma agência bancária em Porto Alegre que tenha PANIC BARS?

Eu não.

Mais sobre o Chicago Fire:

The Iroquois Theatre fire occurred December 30, 1903, in Chicago, Illinois. It is the deadliest theater fire and the deadliest single-building fire in United States history. At least 602 people died as a result of the fire, but not all the deaths were reported, as some of the bodies were removed from the scene.

The Iroquois Theater in Chicago after the fire.

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 The Grand Stair Hall as it appeared before the fire. The stairway on the right saw the greatest number of fatalities.

A história de Chicago se repete em Santa Maria:

Despite being billed as "Absolutely Fireproof" in advertisements and playbills, numerous deficiencies in fire readiness were apparent:

• An editor of Fireproof Magazine had toured the building during construction and had noted "the absence of an intake, or stage draft shaft; the exposed reinforcement of the (proscenium) arch; the presence of wood trim on everything and the inadequate provision of exits."

• A Chicago Fire Department captain who made an unofficial tour of the theatre days before the official opening noted that there were no extinguishers, sprinklers, alarms, telephones, or water connections; the only firefighting equipment available were six canisters of a dry chemical called "Kilfyre", which was normally used to douse chimney fires in residential houses. "Kilfyre" is made of bicarbonate-of-soda and powder. The captain pointed out the deficiencies to the theatre's fire warden but was told that nothing could be done, as the fire warden would simply be dismissed if he brought the matter up with the syndicate of owners. When the captain reported the matter to his commanding officer, he was again told that nothing could be done, as the theatre already had a fire warden.

O (i)responsável pelo teatro foi indiciado, mas no fim foi absolvido (acquitted).

O (i)responsável pelo teatro foi indiciado, mas no fim foi absolvido (acquitted).

Theatre manager Davis was arrested in January 1904, and charged with criminal neglect, but acquitted.

Mais uma vez, a irresponsabilidade comandou o espetáculo.

Esses dois incêndios não foram suficientes para a implementação de coisas simples como portas que abrem para fora. Foi necessário mais um incêndio, em 1908, em Ohio:

The Collinwood school fire (also known as the Lake View School fire) of Ash Wednesday, March 4, 1908, was one of the deadliest disasters of its type in the United States. The conflagration in Collinwood,Ohio, a community that has since been absorbed into the city of Cleveland, resulted in the deaths of 172 students, two teachers and a rescuer.

Imagem do prédio antes do incêndio.

Imagem do prédio depois do incêndio.

Lake View School, Collinwood, Ohio the morning following the fire of March 4, 1908.

175 people lost their lives in the fire, making it the greatest loss of life in a fire of this type in a school in the United States to that date.

Os lugares com grande fluxo de pessoas que você frequenta já têm PANIC BARS? Não têm? Boicote-os.

Eu tento, embora seja ainda muito difícil.

Dixi.