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The MPA in Emergency and Disaster Management
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ResourcesMCNY BlogsMCNY's Emergency and Disaster Management Blog The Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire - Another LookOctober 28th, 2008 On Tuesday, October 28, 2008, Kentucky governor Steve Beshear announced the formation of an independent panel of experts to “review assertions” that the third-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history – which had previously been attributed to the use of aluminum wiring – may have actually been a case of arson. (Article can be accessed here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/us/29kentucky.html?_r=1&oref=slogin) On the night of May 28, 1977, the Beverly Hills Supper Club, located in Southgate, Kentucky, caught fire. It was Memorial Day weekend, and the posh supper club (which had dubbed itself the “Showplace of the Nation”) was packed with some 3,000 guests, and nearly 200 employees. Like many swank entertainment venues that have through history been the scene of horrific – and yet preventable - tragedies, the Beverly Hills Supper Club was long on crystal chandeliers and plush carpets, but woefully short on fire prevention practices and safe building standards. Shortly after 9:00 pm, as fire and noxious smoke suddenly coursed through the supper club’s labyrinth of spiral staircases, corridors, and dining rooms, terrified patrons and staff commenced a desperate struggle to escape the hilltop inferno. Overcrowding, a lack of sprinklers, and obscured exit signs contributed to the deaths of 165 people. Another 200 or so were injured. (An excellent series of articles on the fire and its aftermath by the Cincinnati Enquirer can be accessed here: http://www.enquirer.com/beverlyhills/index2.html) Just over three decades later, the Beverly Hills Supper Club fire understandably remains a painful and controversial topic in Kentucky and neighboring Ohio. Governor Beshear’s decision to establish the panel followed meetings with several of the fire’s survivors, as well as an in-depth review by fire experts of the extensive documentary material connected with the case. According to an October 28, 2008, New York Times article by journalist Stacy L. Neitzel, several survivors prepared a report that expressed their concern that arson may have been the cause of the deadly blaze. Among those on the panel are two law professors from the University of Kentucky, and the former special prosecutor, Cecil F. Dunn, who had produced a report of his findings in February of 1979 for the Kentucky Attorney General’s office. While we wait to see the final results of the panel’s investigations into the Beverly Hills Supper Club fire, Disaster Central believes that Governor Beshear has made a wise decision in establishing the panel. Disaster Central realizes that a historical, political, social, or legal re-evaluation of a disaster is most often a painful exercise for those touched by the disaster. And yet, it also understands that because emergency management and homeland security are experiential (in that we learn from what has occurred) in nature, it is important to know as much about the mechanics of disaster as possible. As part of MCNY’s MPA program in Emergency and Disaster Management, students are given the opportunity to study fire disasters like the Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in Boston in 1942, and the Beverly Hills tragedy in 1977, to better understand not only what happened, and why, but what to do as emergency managers should it happen again. Email this · Subscribe to this Feed · Bookmark This! · Post a Comment » Posted by David Longshore in Emergency Management Planning, MCNY EDM Program. David Longshore is the former Director of MCNY’s Emergency and Disaster Management MPA Program. 4 Responses to “The Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire - Another Look”Leave a Reply
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July 7th, 2009 at 4:43 pm
It was purportedly arsoned.
September 11th, 2009 at 11:02 am
We are doing a project in my College writing class about the fire. If any one was there that night and witnessed the events that occurred, I would greatly appreciate it if you got in touch with me. I would like to set up an interview either in person or over the phone. All out research projects are being put in a Museum.
Thank you!
Emily Williams
November 25th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
There are a lot of fire cases on bar/ clubs. I really hope that the City officials could focus on it. Fire and Safety are very important on this places.
January 21st, 2010 at 7:13 pm
I beliveve that it could have been arson, if it were an accident, the fire could have happened anytime. There was never any proof that it was intentionally set except for what the employees said they saw.