Below you’ll find a non-exhaustive list of significant events in fire service history that happened in the month of August, including major incidents, firefighter line-of-duty deaths (LODDs), innovations, and the like. Thanks to Grant Schwalbe and Sam Hittle for proving their insights, as well as the work of Glenn Corbett.
Some of these incidents may provide a springboard for your company training or training ideas for drills.
August 1
Ritz Tower Fire, 8 firefighters killed, NYC, 1932
Forest fire kills 48, Massif des Aures, Algeria, 1959
August 2
Summerland Leisure Centre fire kills 50, Isle of Man, England, 1973
LODDs: Six FDNY firefighters killed, Waldbaum’s Fire and Collapse, Brooklyn, NY, 1978
- Mayday Monday: Building Construction
- The Fog of the Fireground: Know Your Buildings
- Reading a Building: The Bowstring Roof
August 3
Hamburg (Germany) warehouse fire, $54M loss, 1983
August 4
Forest fire kills 13 firefighters, Gates of the Mountain, MT, 1949; Mann Gulch Fire tragedy was catalyst for creating the National Smokejumper School in Missoula
August 5
“Indiana Dunes” tests report leads to home detector standards this month, 1975
August 6
Motorboat fire kills 11, off Basilan Strait, Philippines, 1972
August 7
Dynamite truck blast kills 1,100, Cali, Columbia, 1956
August 8
Coal mine explosion kills 17, Walbrzych, Poland, 1976
Maui (Hawaii) wildfires kill more than 100, destroy Lahaina, 2023
August 9
Titan II ICBM solo fire kills 53, near Searcy (AR), 1965
August 10
Gateway Restaurant fire kills 22, Andover (OH), 1955
August 11
First sprinkler head patented by HS Parmelee, 1874
LODD: Frederick County (MD) Fire Captain Joshua D. Laird dies after falling into basement at fire, 2021
August 12
Livonia (MI) auto plant fire, $220M loss, 1953
August 13
National Safety Council incorporated by Congress, 1953
August 14
Frontier #1 coal mine explosion kills 99, Kemmerer, WY, 1923
August 15
In-flight balloon fire kills 5, Barrington, IL, 1981
August 16
Forest fire kills 25, Transkel Veld, South Afric, 1975
August 17
Gulf Oil refinery fire, $44M loss, Philadelphia, PA, 1975
August 18
LODDs: Deutsche Bank, 2 FDNY killed, 2007
- NIOSH Releases Report on FDNY Deutsche Bank LODDs
- The Professor: Demolitions
- The Construction Site as the Fireground
- Firefighting Operations in High-Risk Fire Environments
August 19
French forest fire kills 230, 1949
August 20
Cinema Rex theater fire kills 422, Abadan, Iran, 1978
August 21
Liquid propylene tank truck crash blast kills 12, Martelange, Belgium, 1967
August 22
British Airtour B-737 crash fire kills 54, Manchester, England, 1985
August 23
Warehouse fire kills 10 firefighters, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1959
August 24
Washington D.C. set afire by British troops, War of 1812
August 25
Washington House Hotel fire kills 12, Berkeley Springs, WV, 1974
August 26
Fireworks factory fire kills 23, Chiaya, Taiwan, 1958
August 27
Argonaut gold quartz mine fire kills 47, Jackson (CA), 1922
LODDs: Two FDNY firefighters killed in dollar store fire in the Bronx, 2006
August 28
Hull (MA) conflagration kills 2, destroys 44 buildings, 1923
August 29
Fireworks factory fire kills 27, Hong Kong, 1993
Hurricane Katrina devastates Gulf Coast, 2005
August 30
Select movie theater fire kills 88, Paris, France, 1947
August 31
In Crowd lounge fire kills 13, Gary, IN, 1968
