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FIRE AND FILM
The disastrous tragic fire that has caused the destruction of the Cleveland hospital and has caused a sense of deep commotion in the public of the whole world, has been, in part at least, caused by cinematograph films stored in the radiograph room. A precise confirmation of this is not yet to hand, in any case several chemists have each explained in a diffetent manner how the poisonous gases that have withspread death amongst patients, doctors and nurses, have been produced. There is no doubt that other factors have contributed to produce this great disaster.
As the problem of fires produced by films is of first class importance, especially for education, which reverts to the utilization of non-inflammable films, or to use special systems for the storing of the films and for the use of projection apparatuses suitably protected, we think it useful to give herewith a large resume of an article written by Mr. Thomas Mc. Ilvaine who possesses a high competence on this subject. The immense quantities of films produced annually is sufficient to demonstrate the importance of the peril.
Only in the U. States of America the annual production of films amounts to more than 400 millions of metres (about 270.000 miles). The films are today stored by the hundreds in distributing offices, schools, institutes, etc., and in some of these places there are thousands and tens of thousands metres of films.
Some years ago a Pittsburg fire caused the death of ten persons and twenty more were severely injured. The fire commencing in a room of a film-hire office rapidly decomposed the films stored in the room, and the gases produced, reaching a very high temperature exploded, causing the fall of the main walls holding the first three stories of the building although these walls had a thickness of over 8 inches.
Expert technical people were called to examine the debris, and reported that nearly all the regulations relating to the storing of the films had been neglected. The vaults were provided with double doors, but these had been left open, and there were no fire extinguishers at hand. The ventilators that could have carried away into the open the gas produced did not exist ; also large quantities of films had been placed outside the strong rooms ; in a room some employees had fitted a kitchen into which, evidently by mistake, pieces of films were found. The heating pipes in the building had been left uncovered, and many of the films had been left outside their metal boxes. The doors leading to the landing of the staircase were left continually open so that the current of air produced permitted of a rapid circulation of the gases in all parts of the building.
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