This is a list of notable nightclub fires at indoor and outdoor venues. Deadly nightclub fires often attribute to pyrotechnic failures, hence some of the list also feature in the list of fireworks accidents.
Name | Location | Country | Year | Deaths | Injuries | Origin | Accelerant | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Study Club fire | Detroit, Michigan | United States | 1929 | 22 | 50 | undetermined; possibly a lit cigarette | draperies, decorations [1] | Prohibition-era speakeasy nightclub |
Rhythm Club fire | Natchez, Mississippi | United States | 1940 | 209 | 200 | Spanish moss sprayed with Flit | At the time of incident, second-worst club fire in American history | |
Cocoanut Grove fire | Boston, Massachusetts | United States | 1942 | 492 | 130 | undetermined (disputed) | draperies, decorations, possibly a refrigerant leak (methyl chloride) | Deadliest club fire in history, and the second-worst single-building fire in American history (second only to the Iroquois Theatre fire) |
Karlslust dance hall fire | Berlin, Germany | Germany | 1947 | 81 | 150 | stove pipe | Worst fire disaster in Berlin since World War II; death toll reported between 80-88, but considered to be 81 | |
Top Storey Club | Bolton, Lancashire, England | United Kingdom | 1961 | 19 | solvents, paints | 14 died in the fire and 5 died of injuries received from jumping out of windows | ||
Dale's Penthouse | Montgomery, Alabama | United States | 1967 | 26 | 8 | non-extinguished tobacco pipe left in jacket pocket in the cloakroom | Restaurant/lounge on the top floor of an 11-story building with no fire escape | |
Club Cinq-Sept fire | Saint-Laurent-du-Pont | France | 1970 | 146 | discarded match | polyurethane, papier-mâché | ||
Blue Bird Café fire | Montreal, Quebec | Canada | 1972 | 37 | 56 | arson | gasoline | |
Playtown Cabaret fire | Osaka | Japan | 1972 | 118 | 81 | discarded match or cigarette butt | clothing | Club on the top floor of a seven-story building with no fire escape |
Whiskey Au Go Go fire | Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, Queensland | Australia | 1973 | 15 | arson | gasoline | ||
UpStairs Lounge arson attack | New Orleans, Louisiana | United States | 1973 | 32 | 15 | arson | Ronsonol lighter fluid | Deadliest arson attack in New Orleans at that time, and one of the deadliest attacks on LGBT people in United States history |
Gulliver's nightclub fire | Port Chester, New York | United States | 1974 | 24 | 32 | arson | ||
Time Club fire | Seoul | South Korea | 1974 | 64 | short circuit | The total death toll for the entire Daewang Corner building fire was 88; 8 died from jumping out of windows | ||
Beverly Hills Supper Club fire | Southgate, Kentucky | United States | 1977 | 165 | 200 | possibly electrical | carpeting, wooden paneling | Third-worst club fire in American history |
Denmark Place fire | Central London | United Kingdom | 1980 | 37 | 23 | arson | gasoline | |
Stardust fire | Artane, Dublin | Ireland | 1981 | 48 | 214 | electrical | cooking oil (225 gallons) | |
Alcalá 20 nightclub fire | Madrid | Spain | 1983 | 82 | 27 | electrical | ||
Chowon (Greenfield) disco fire | Daegu | South Korea | 1983 | 25 | 67 | short circuit | mostly underage victims; exit reportedly chained shut to prevent them from leaving without paying [2] | |
Common People fire | Seoul | South Korea | 1984 | 10 | 2 | oil stove knocked over during quarrel | oil fire spread to the couch | fire broke out at 4:20 am; victims mostly underage |
Happy Land fire | The Bronx, New York | United States | 1990 | 87 | 6 | arson | gasoline | Fifth-worst club fire in American history |
Daegu Gosonggwan fire | Daegu | South Korea | 1991 | 16 | 13 | arson | 6 liters of gasoline | Fire started by spiteful rejected customer |
Kheyvis fire | Olivos, Buenos Aires | Argentina | 1993 | 17 | 24 | burning furniture (prank) | Second-worst club fire in Argentine history | |
Yiyuan Disco fire | Fuxin, Liaoning | China | 1994 | 233 | 16 | sofa (caused by burning newspaper) [3] | decorations | |
Ozone Disco fire | Quezon City | Philippines | 1996 | 162 | 95 | unknown, possibly electrical | acoustic foam | Worst fire in Philippine history |
Rolling Stones fire | Seoul | South Korea | 1996 | 11 | 3 | discarded cigarette butt | wet paint | fire trucks delayed by cars parked in narrow alley |
Gothenburg discothèque fire | Gothenburg | Sweden | 1998 | 63 | 213 | arson | ||
Incheon club fire | Incheon | South Korea | 1999 | 56 | 78 | basement construction work | mostly underage victims; exit reportedly chained shut to prevent them from leaving without paying [4] [5] | |
Luoyang Christmas fire | Luoyang, Henan | China | 2000 | 309 | 50 | welding | Building was of mixed-use. The fire was sparked by a welding accident on the basement, with most floors of the Dongdu building being dedicated to blue-collar activities, and the nightclub itself being located only on the fourth floor. Otherwise second-deadliest club fire in history. | |
Lobohombo explosion | Mexico City | Mexico | 2000 | 22 | 24 | gas canisters [6] | ||
Volendam New Year's fire | Volendam | Netherlands | 2001 | 14 | 241 | pyrotechnics (sparkler) | decorations (Christmas) | |
Canecão Mineiro nightclub fire | Belo Horizonte | Brazil | 2001 | 7 | 197 | pyrotechnics | ||
Myojo 56 building fire | Kabukicho, Shinjuku | Japan | 2001 | 44 | 3 | suspected arson | Fifth-deadliest fire in post-war Japanese history | |
Club La Guajira fire | Caracas | Venezuela | 2002 | 47 | 28 | Christmas decoration | Bouncer delayed exit asking patrons not to leave without paying | |
Utopía nightclub fire | Santiago de Surco, Lima | Peru | 2002 | 29 | 57 | torch | ||
The Station nightclub fire | West Warwick, Rhode Island | United States | 2003 | 100 | 230 | pyrotechnics | acoustic foam | Fourth-deadliest club fire in American history |
República Cromañón nightclub fire | Buenos Aires | Argentina | 2004 | 194 | 1432 | pyrotechnics | plastic net (media sombra), styrofoam and wood decorations, acoustic panels | Worst club fire in Argentina history |
El Festival Ballroom fire | Houston, Texas | United States | 2004 | 1 | 3 | arson | Firefighter killed in fire; initially thought to have been started by a truck, quickly ruled as arson [7] | |
911 nightclub fire | Moscow | Russia | 2007 | 10 | 4 | pyrotechnics [8] | ||
Factory nightclub fire | Quito | Ecuador | 2008 | 15 | 35 | pyrotechnics [6] | ||
Wuwang Club fire | Shenzhen, Guangdong | China | 2008 | 43 | 88 | pyrotechnics | ||
Santika Club fire | Watthana, Bangkok | Thailand | 2009 | 66 | 222 | stage pyrotechnics | tar paper, plastic waterproofing | |
Lame Horse fire | Perm | Russia | 2009 | 156 | ≤160 | pyrotechnics | decorations (willow twig) | Worst fire in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union |
Sabor Latino fire | Rome | Italy | 2010 | 4 [9] [10] | electrical [11] | acoustic foam | ||
Jack Daniels nightclub fire | Taichung | Taiwan | 2011 | 9 | 13 | Originated during a fire show by a male dancer on stage, described as holding sparklers, [12] a torch, [13] or LED torch that malfunctioned and produced sparks [14] | ||
Tiger Disco fire | Patong, Phuket | Thailand | 2012 | 4 | 11 | electrical | acoustic foam | Officially attributed to a short circuit, [15] some reports stated that the fire started when lightning struck a nearby transformer. [16] |
Kiss nightclub fire | Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul | Brazil | 2013 | 245 | 630 | pyrotechnics | acoustic foam | Worst club fire and second worst fire disaster in Brazil, third deadliest club fire in history |
Colectiv nightclub fire | Bucharest | Romania | 2015 | 64 | 160 | pyrotechnics | acoustic foam (polyurethane) | Worst club fire in Romanian history |
Ghost Ship warehouse fire | Oakland, California | United States | 2016 | 36 | 2 | undetermined, possibly electrical | N/A | Converted warehouse used as an art collective and venue. Fire officials say staircase to second floor was made out of wooden pallets. |
Hanoi karaoke bar fire | Cầu Giấy, Hanoi | Vietnam | 2016 | 13 | welding [17] | |||
Magway karaoke bar fire | Magway | Myanmar | 2017 | 16 | gas leak [18] | |||
Yaoundé nightclub fire | Yaoundé | Cameroon | 2022 | 16 | 8 | fireworks | Fireworks ignited the ceiling; eventually spread to gas bottles, causing explosions [19] | |
Sorong nightclub fire | Sorong, West Papua | Indonesia | 2022 | 19 | rioting [20] | One victim died from stabbing during clashes. | ||
Mountain B nightclub fire | Sattahip, Chonburi | Thailand | 2022 | 26 | 22 | soundproof foam | ||
2022 Binh Duong karaoke bar fire | Thuận An, Binh Duong | Vietnam | 2022 | 32 | 3 | short circuit | ||
Kostroma café fire | Kostroma | Russia | 2022 | 13 [21] | 5 | pyrotechnic flare | Initial reports say that a pyrotechnic flare was released by a Russian soldier who had just returned from Ukraine. [22] | |
Fonda Milagros nightclub fire | Murcia | Spain | 2023 | 13 | unknown | |||
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Events during the year 2021 in Italy.
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