Global InformationList of nightclub fires information
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 |
- ^ Buildings: Report. January 1979. ISBN 9780877622284.
- ^ "24 Reported Dead, 70 Injured In Fire in South Korean Disco". The New York Times. 18 April 1983. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
- ^ "China holds 31 responsible for disco blaze". United Press International. 23 December 1994. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
- ^ "54 Die in Fire at Youth Hangout in South Korea". The New York Times. 31 October 1999. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
- ^ Shin, Bong-gun (31 October 1999). "Fire Kills 54, Injures 75 at Illegal Bar in S. Korea". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
- ^ a b "Brazil, Mexico And Other Deadly Nightclub Fires In Latin America". The Huffington Post. 2013-01-28.
- ^ "Ballroom blaze that killed firefighter arson". Houston Chronicle. April 6, 2004.
- ^ "Пожар в "911": клуб сгорел из-за бутафорских огнетушителей?". РИА Новости (in Russian).
- ^ "Il rogo alla discoteca Sabor ora c' è un indagato per i 4 morti - la Repubblica.it". Archivio - la Repubblica.it (in Italian). Retrieved Jun 23, 2020.
- ^ "Le vittime del rogo al Sabor Latino: il dj, le colf e il ragazzo rumeno - Corriere Roma". roma.corriere.it (in Italian). Retrieved Jun 23, 2020.
- ^ "Cuatro jóvenes de origen latinoamericano mueren en incendio en Roma". andina.pe (in Spanish). 14 March 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
- ^ "Nine die in pub fire in Taiwan". Sydney Morning Herald. 2011-03-06.
- ^ "Taiwan nightclub fire kills 9". UPI. 2011-03-06.
- ^ "9 die in night club fire in central Taiwan city of Taichung". The China Post. 2011-03-06.
- ^ "Owner Walks Free Despite Four Dying In Disco Fire". Stickboy Bangkok. 9 September 2015. Archived from the original on 19 July 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
- ^ "Four killed in disco fire at Phuket club". CNN. 17 August 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
- ^ "Hanoi karaoke bar blaze kills at least 13". Vietnam Plus. 2 November 2016.
- ^ "16 killed in local karaoke bar fire in Myanmar". Daily Sabah. 3 April 2017.
- ^ "Cameroon nightclub fire: More than a dozen dead in Yaounde blaze". Al Jazeera. 23 January 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
- ^ "At Least 19 Dead In Stabbing, Fire At Indonesian Night Club". Agence France-Presse. NDTV. 25 January 2022.
- ^ "Russian Nightclub Fire Kills 13; One Person Arrested". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 5 November 2022. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
- ^ "Nightclub fire that killed 13 'started by Russian soldier told to return to frontline'". The Telegraph. 5 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.