Club Fire Tragedy
Expert Says Station Night Club Had Poorly Designed Exits
(Providence-AP) -- The Rhode Island nightclub where a fast-moving fire claimed 100 lives had poorly designed exits. That's according to a crowd management expert who testified before
a state commission probing the blaze.
Paul Wertheimer, a Chicago-based consultant, says the four exits at The Station were not accessible to many of those in the building the night of the February 20th inferno.
Wertheimer says only two of the exits appear designed to be used by patrons. Of those, only the front entrance would have been clearly visible to most of those inside the club.
He recommends the state adopt national fire safety standards and require nightclubs to employ people trained in crowd management.
Of the 100 who died in the blaze, more than 30 were from Massachusetts.
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