OSH 5302 Unit 4 Journal

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Columbia Southern University *

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OSH 5302

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Economics

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Jan 9, 2024

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1 MGM Grand Hotel Fire Review Christian Hallock Columbia Southern University OSH 5302 Prof. Heather Frost November 29, 2023

2 MGM Grand Hotel Fire On November 21, 1980, in Las Vegas, Nevada, a major hotel known as the MGM Grand, caught fire. “The MGM Grand fire was a highly publicized event with damage amounts estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars and with more than 80 lives lost” (Sprecher et. al., 1988 p.2). 700 total injuries were sustained during the fire, and thirteen hundred people that were involved during the incident (Neumann, 2022). “Only eighteen of the victims died on the casino floor, while sixty-one people died on the sixteenth through the twenty-sixth floors” (Neumann, 2022, para. 2). The hotel was built in 1973 and was thought to be up to modern fire safety codes of the time. “The MGM Grand Hotel consisted of a casino, restaurants, nightclubs, and convention rooms in a low-rise section, as well as 2,076 hotel rooms housed in a twenty-six- story tower” (Neumann, 2022). Sprinklers were only installed on the casino floors, basement and other required areas that did not include individual rooms of the hotel. A review of the fire is important to understand what started the fire, what contributed to the fire, what designs of the building contributed to the fire, and how a thorough hazard analysis (prevention through design) could have assisted in preventing such a terrible catastrophe from occurring. In 1973, the MGM Grand was designed meeting the current fire codes of the time but only by meeting the minimum requirements which was attributed to political influence (Hensler, 2020). This included egress system to provide safe passages for guests, installation of fire suppression in limited areas, detection and alarm systems, a system of isolation zones to prevent fire spread, and HVAC system that was designed to stop flows during an emergency (Hensler, 2022). Despite these systems, there were several design flaws in the building, that were to code, however failed to prevent fire growth and spread. For example, some areas of the hotel did have

3 sprinklers however many areas, such as the rooms, did not. The location of the initial ignition of fire occurred in the deli areas, which were not sprinkled. This allowed for the fire to spread uncontrolled until fire department personnel arrived on scene. Other factors included HVAC deficiencies, alarm system deficiencies, and unusually high amounts of flammable materials in the building. Based on the findings from after action reports, a large factor included a human one. Due to increased political pressure and a desire to keep building costs down, several areas of building design were overlooked. One example is that during construction, it was recommended that the ownership install a sprinkler system that would effectively cover the entirety of the hotel. To keep costs down, the ownership was able to get approved to only install sprinklers that were required in certain areas. Additionally, the egress system that was in place failed during the fire. It was found that in the time between 1973 and at the time of the fire, design modifications throughout the hotel had been made which in turn negated the egress system. Another failure was that the HVAC safety system that was designed to stop air flow during a fire also failed and throughout the incident, pumped in fresh outside air into the facility (Hensler, 2022). All these factors contributed to the fire catastrophe that day. Prior and during construction, safety members provided a review of the safety systems, like PtD, to the ownership and the local governmental agencies. A thorough PtD with a backing of more required regulations would have been able to ensure a less disastrous event, had the safety recommendations been followed. Had a PtD been conducted, issues with the intended safety features would have been addressed and have enough clout to circumvent human or political action. Design changes would not have been allowed without improvements to the system so that the intent of life safety would be ensured. The HVAC system would have been

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