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Spotlight Session
The High Cost of Fashion at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory
Track(s): Building & Life Safety, Codes & Standards

Casey Grant, Fire Protection Research Foundation

Audio Sample:




The tragic fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York City on 25 March 1911 resulted in 146 workers losing their lives. Yet the changes that resulted from this single large life loss disaster were profound, and from today's centennial perspective we clearly see this as a key turning point in our forward progress as a civilization. The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire resulted in significant measureable changes, not only in advances with fire protection codes and standards, but also in other areas such as the labor movement. The Triangle Fire is the cornerstone event for a dramatic shift in how we as a civilization value human life, and the genesis of NFPA 101®: Life Safety Code® is traced directly to this single fire.

Casey Grant is Program Director for the Fire Protection Research Foundation, an affiliate of the NFPA. He holds a Bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland and a Master's degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, both in Fire Protection Engineering, and he is a Registered Professional Engineer in the states of California and Tennessee. Casey is a Fellow of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers, and has one fire protection related U.S. patent.