On April 2 1930, a fire broke out in Ohio prison, killing 320 prisoners, many of whom were trapped in their cells and could not escape from the fire. Those who didn't burn to death died of inhaling smoke and toxic smoke. This is the deadliest prison fire in American history.
The prison itself is a miserable hole in hell, with 4,300 prisoners in a structure that can only accommodate 1500 people. An expansion project is under construction, and scaffolding is erected outside a part of a building called the Big Building. Just after the prisoners were locked in their cells for the night, a candle lit a pile of tarpaulins and the area caught fire.
It was during the Great Depression, and many prisoners were imprisoned for minor crimes committed in desperation to support their families, which also explained the reasons for the large-scale crowding. Every cell door must be locked and unlocked manually, which makes many people beg for release that will never come.
The prison guard left to save his hiding place, but his daughter insisted on providing assistance to the injured and dying prisoners in the compound. Two prisoners managed to grab the key from an idle prison guard, saved the lives of many inmates and prison guards, and became the last group of heroes.
After the tragedy, people disputed the cause of the fire. Prison officials said that the three prisoners caught fire to divert their attention and try to escape. In the months after the fire, two of the three prisoners accused of arson committed suicide, which is supposed to have some influence on the statements of prison officials.
Other people involved in the case thought the fire was a terrible accident, while the prison authorities accused the prisoners of shifting the responsibility of the authorities for handling the poor situation to the prisoners.
The Chicago fire with the final death toll exceeding 187 1 (see: How did the Chicago fire start? ) The shirt factory in new york caught fire, but few people have heard of the tragedy that happened on April 2 1, 1, 930. Dr Mitchell Rose from the College of Criminal Justice has made extensive research on this fire. He said:
There are many books about many disasters in China, but most anthologies about major disasters exclude prisons. I don't know why. Maybe it's because the public thinks they are not worth recording as others, because they are prisoners.
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