Lab Report on Winecoff Hotel Fire

Why did fire investigators perform a lab report after the Winecoff Hotel fire?

There are two huge unanswered questions surrounding the Winecoff Hotel fire.

The first is who or what started the fire?

Although the location of where the fire began could be easily determined, the explanation of how it started is still a mystery.

The second critical question to answer regarding the fire is why did it spread so fast?

One of the goals of the lab report was to hopefully find some answers to these two questions.

Although determining the cause of the fire would be difficult, perhaps even impossible, accounting for the flame spread appeared to be a little more attainable.

There was a high suspicion that several factors contributed to the quick spread of the flames which led to the deaths of 119 people.

One of the main factors contributing to the fatalities in the fire was the design of the building itself. Due to the lack of adequate protection between floors, the fire was able to progress very rapidly by means of the open stairs.

Another highly suspicious cause of the accelerated travel of the fire, was the construction materials used in the hallways and rooms.

Chemicals such as lacquer thinner, mineral spirits and varnish were found in the hotel. Of the 14 chemicals tested, eight were considered to be "dangerous" or "dangerous near fire."

Here is a copy of the official lab report conducted on materials found in the Winecoff Hotel shortly after the fire.

After reading the lab report, click here to return to the Winecoff Hotel fire information page.

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