General Resources
- NFPA Case Study: Nightclub FiresThis study, which was carried out in response to the Station Nightclub Fire, also includes summaries of and lessons learned from several major nightclub fires, including the Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire, which is discussed on pages 7-10.
Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire: Introduction
The Beverly Hills Supper Club was a popular upscale venue in Southgate, Kentucky. The fire occurred Saturday, May 28, 1977 on Memorial Day weekend. 165 people were killed, and over 200 were injured. The original building had been expanded multiple times, and the club included multiple restaurant rooms, private party rooms, and two performance rooms, which often hosted nationally-known entertainers. Up to 3,000 patrons and 182 employees were at the club at the time of the fire. The fire's exact time of ignition is unknown. A wedding reception in the club's Zebra Room had ended around 8:30 pm, and some guests had complained that the room was too hot. In 8:56, two waitresses entered the Zebra Room and saw smoke. The fire department was called at 9:01 and arrived within three minutes. The fire spread quickly through the building, reaching the largest-capacity room, the Cabaret Room, by 9:10. Several factors contributed to the loss of life in the fire, including overcrowding, insufficient fire exits and a confusing layout, lack of sprinklers and an automatic sounding alarm, lack of firewalls, hazardous electrical wiring, and lack of oversight and enforcement by the local autorities.
Resources at the IFSI Library
These links take you to the IFSI catalog. To request an item, click "Add to Request Bin." This takes you to a page where you can fill out the online request form and submit to the IFSI library. To request items, you must be an Illinois resident with a library card from an Illinois library.
Inside the Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire by Call Number: TH9448.B48 1996ISBN: 1563112477Publication Date: 1996
The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes--And Why by Call Number: BF698.35.R47 R57 2009ISBN: 0307352900Publication Date: 2009Chapter 5, Groupthink, analyzes human behavior during the fire in the greater context of how people respond in disaster situations.
The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes--And Why by ISBN: 0739329308Publication Date: 2008This is the audiobook version of the book described above.
Reconstruction of a Tragedy: The Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire by Call Number: TH 9448.B478 1977Publication Date: 1977This is the NFPA Report on its investigation of the fire.
The Beverly Hills Supper Club - the Untold Story Behind Kentucky's Worst Tragedy by Call Number: TH9448.B48 2012ISBN: 061572924XPublication Date: 2012
Online Resources
- Cincinnati Enquirer - Remembering the tragic Beverly Hills Supper Club FireThis site from the Cincinnati Enquirer brings together a photo gallery and a collection of links to other articles on the fire.
- Cincinnati Enquirer--What Remains: The Fire and 40 Years"The story of the fire that took 165 lives, through those that were there."
- Cincinnati Magazine--The Last SupperThis article, originally published in the May 2008 issue of Cincinnati Magazine, describes the events of the fire in survivors' own words.
- NOVA--Survivor StoriesIn this interview with PBS's NOVA, Lise Bohannon, who was a cocktail waitress at the club, describes her experience escaping from the fire and how it has affected her since then.
- Sociological Focus--Role Extension in Disaster: Employee Behavior at the Beverly Hills Supper Club FireThis is an article by Drue M. Johnson and Norris R. Johnson which was originally published in the February 1988 issue of the academic journal Sociological Focus. It examines police interviews with surviving employees and analyzes their behavior during the disaster and how they helped customers to escape.
- State Aides Rebuked Over Kentucky FireThis archived New York Times article details a Congressional Hearing on the Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire.
Videos
This is a news report from WCPO News of Cincinnati from the day after the fire. It includes helicopter footage of the burning club, a short statement by one of the busboys, and footage of the makeshift morgue.
This video was taken by Eastern Kentucky University fire science faculty after the fire. It shows the ruins of the club.
Librarian
IFSI Library Information
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