What theme park fires can teach us about fire safety

Fire protection is often thought about in terms of obviously dangerous industries, such as manufacturing or hazardous materials storage. But it’s equally important in the most mundane of settings, from shopping centres to airports. A large proportion of the fire protection systems we install are in environments like these, where accidental or deliberate fires or blasts could threaten civilian lives and property.

One of the most unexpected and devastating contexts in which fires can occur is at theme parks. Despite the open outdoor spaces, fires can and do occur, and have led to some of the most tragic fires in history. Each incident has something to teach us about fire protection—and the ways in which simple mistakes and coincidences can come together to lead to a disaster.

Ghost Train fire (Luna Park, Australia)

One of the most famous fires and theme parks accidents in Australian history occurred back in 1979, at the famous Luna Park in Sydney. Near closing time, a fire was spotted by riders inside the beloved Ghost Train attraction, either in or near a fake fireplace inside the ride. No automatic alarm was triggered, however, and staff weren’t notified until several cars had already gone inside. The fire spread incredibly quickly, and a number of riders ended up continuing inside, only to perish while trying to escape, with a lucky few managing to get out or being pulled out before their cars went through the doors. Seven people were ultimately killed, including 6 children and 1 adult, with four of the children being close friends.

The design of the ride was particularly convoluted, as was common in ghost train rides, with the ride snaking and winding through a variety of sections with a confusing indoor layout, including a wealth of highly flammable scenery and decoration. The only section of the ride which briefly went outdoors was a small piece of track in a closed metal cage, with no exit door. Onlookers saw cars come through here on fire as the ride continued to operate throughout the blaze, though thankfully none with any occupants.

Very little action was taken in the aftermath, with the blaze put down as an electrical fire, and the involved parties being acquitted. However, this has been heavily disputed since, including in a major Netflix documentary, which alleged that the fire may have been deliberate. Images from the time show the electrical cabinet blamed for starting the fire was completely intact, before the whole site was demolished and cleared just days into the investigation. Witnesses claimed a gang of bikers boasted about starting the fire using an accelerant—something that may have been instigated by organised crime, in a bid to gain control of the land the ride stood on.

The lessons from the fire, however, are longstanding. One is a risk that’s often overlooked when it comes to workplace fire safety: the possibility for arson. Risk is often calculated based on either equipment failure or the actions of employees, and how their day-to-day work might instigate a fire. What is less often factored in is how visitors to a site might deliberately circumvent fire protection to start a fire. The lessons around the clarity and availability of fire exits, automatic emergency stop systems, and fire detections systems meanwhile had a long legacy in the theme park industry, and have saved countless lives in the years since.

New Taipei water park (Taipei, RoC)

A fire at a water park sounds like the setup to an IT Crowd gag, but the consequences of this fire were real and devastating. The park was full of guests enjoying a ‘colour party’, inspired by the Hindu festival of Holi, where participants are daubed with colourful powders. The event would adopt a similar theme, putting on music and entertainment while partygoers danced in clouds of colourful dust.

Around 1,000 people were enjoying the event around the central stage when a cloud of coloured corn starch was fired into the crowd, many of whom were dancing in a large, drained swimming pool below. Something—likely a lit cigarette—then ignited the cloud of starch, which produced a massive fireball. This was further exacerbated when attendants used carbon dioxide fire extinguishers to douse the flames, which counter-intuitively propelled the cloud into multiple smaller clouds, which also ignited.

The result was that, as people sought to escape the blaze, the clouds were actually pushed towards them, and engulfed more people. While the dust fires did not burn for that long, the outcome was horrifying: 497 people (almost half of the attendees) were injured, with many suffering serious burns, leaving 44 victims still hospitalised over five months later. 15 people ultimately died, with some suffering up to 90% burns, partly due to the light clothing many were wearing in the hot summer weather.

This incident highlights the role that combustible materials can play in starting and accelerating a fire, even those not considered inherently dangerous. Corn starch would not readily be seen as a risk factor, yet a proper risk assessment would have identified the potential for a dust fire, such as can sometimes be seen in construction environments where clouds of wood dust are produced. Indeed, this risk had been highlighted earlier that year by a researcher at a local university, ultimately to no avail.

It’s a demonstration of the way that materials can pose fire safety issues when introduced to and used in new environments, and how they can combine with local elements in an unexpected way. This is the reason why any change to materials storage needs to be assessed to determine how those materials might combine with other stored materials, and impact your existing fire safety policies. What might be an inert chemical or other substance by itself could act as a trigger or accelerant in the presence of another substance.

All of these incidents demonstrate that fires can occur extremely quickly and in unlikely locations and circumstances. It’s for this reason that a comprehensive fire protection strategy is necessary, and a range of fire protection systems are valuable. This means the provision of active fire protection systems such as sprinklers and fire detectors, but also the use of passive fire protection to slow the spread of fire, and protect against blasts, whether that;’s from material explosions, transformer explosions, or terrorism.

Invicta Durasteel offers a range of passive fire protection systems, shielding everything from extraction ducts to walls, ceilings, and maintenance access covers from the threat of fires and explosions. Browse our Systems pages to learn more, or get in contact with us today.