A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
On Nov. 28, 1942, fire engulfed the Cocoanut Grove nightclub in Boston, killing 492 people in the deadliest nightclub blaze ever.
Per wire reports of the time, the Cocoanut Grove, one of the largest nightclubs in the country, was one of wartime Boston’s most popular night spots.
The blaze was the second worst fire disaster in U.S. history, after the 1903 Iroquois Theater fire in Chicago that left 602 dead.
Estimates after the Cocoanut Grove fire indicate almost 1,000 people were crowded into the nightclub, which was only licensed to seat 460.
Grove owner Barnett Welansky, who had locked exit doors so customers couldn’t leave without paying, was imprisoned for manslaughter and violating public building laws.
Such tragedies are rare nowadays, thanks to uniform safety measures across the country, although they occasionally occur in unsanctioned locations, like the 2016 blaze in Oakland, California, at a huge warehouse and artist collective. At least 24 people died in the blaze.
In 2003, indoor fireworks during a Great White show at The Station nightclub in Warwick, Rhode Island, started the building on fire and resulted in 100 deaths and 200 injuries.
In 1977, a Memorial Day fire broke out in the overcrowded Beverly Hills Supper Club in Southgate, Kentucky, in which 165 people died and 200 were injured.
In 1940, a fire broke out at Rhythm Club in Natchez, Mississippi, and took 209 lives. Spanish moss that lined the dance hall was engulfed in flames. The windows had been boarded up to prevent people from sneaking into the club.
Here are some stories from the Cocoanut Grove fire of 1942, how those who lost their lives are remembered, and reports of other such tragedies around the world:
“Boston remembers fatal blaze of 1942″
“Survivors, victims’ families mark 50th anniversary of fatal blaze”
“Blast in Tokyo nightclub traps and kills 44 people”
“Deadly fire leads to finger-pointing”
“Fire at overcrowded Filipino disco kills 150″
“4 detained in Russian club fire; death toll at 112″