# 13 People Including 7 Children Die in Fire in House Owned By City of Philadelphia **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 5, 2022, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286 "2022-01-05T22:41:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2022, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/21 "2022-01-08T00:09:42Z")
Even if there are additional escape routes, in that sort of set-up, a lot is up to the occupants. I grew in the second floor apartment of a two family house. There were three exits from the apartment to the hallway. One in the kitchen , one in my parents’ bedroom , and one in the side room off my parents’ room. Thing is there was really only one exit, the one in the kitchen because there was furniture against the other two. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2022, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/22 "2022-01-08T01:02:26Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > You shouldn’t need to, once a year is erring on the safe side. Many batteries are good for 2 years now in smoke detectors. When the detector starts beeping every minute or five, it’s time to change the battery. And that happens no less often than every 6 months for all the detectors I have, which are at least 2 if not 3 different brands. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2022, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/23 "2022-01-08T02:15:20Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > You shouldn’t need to, once a year is erring on the safe side. Many batteries are good for 2 years now in smoke detectors. This was many years ago but I had an A/C powered smoke detector with battery back up. If the battery went dead it would beep from the A/C power. So it got unplugged and eventually tossed because it was so irritating. I’m down to a single unit and need to add more. But I consider fire extinguishers as the most important part of the process. I keep them strategically located in the house for the purpose of fighting my way to an exit point. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2022, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/24 "2022-01-08T04:25:01Z")
When a fire happens in a row house, what stops it from spreading to adjacent houses and burning the whole block down (as happened in the MOVE disaster)? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2022, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/25 "2022-01-08T15:36:56Z")
It depends how it’s constructed but the older ones would have a brick wall between each house. they are essentially an individual brick house that touches the house next to it. The newer ones would have some kind of fire barrier built into the construction code. That should extend up to roof line. The operative word is “should”. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2022, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/26 "2022-01-11T17:40:41Z")
The fire department actually responding (unlike the MOVE fire). ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2022, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/27 "2022-01-11T22:40:16Z")
> **[Christmas tree behind fire that killed 12, officials confirm](https://apnews.com/article/lifestyle-fires-philadelphia-christmas-590e1c5501c488f16aa566bc4052ecc8)** > > PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A Christmas tree fire caused the blaze that killed 12 relatives in a Philadelphia rowhome duplex, investigators confirmed Tuesday as they identified victims and announced preliminary findings, but stopped short of officially... So the family made a major mistake in not taking the Christmas tree down immediately after Christmas. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2022, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/28 "2022-01-11T23:03:14Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > So the family made a major mistake in not taking the Christmas tree down immediately after Christmas. Plenty of people leave their tree up until 6 January. You know, the Twelfth Day of Christmas – a.k.a. the Epiphany. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/29 "2022-01-12T03:54:35Z")
> [@Mr.Miskatonic](#): > > The fire department actually responding (unlike the MOVE fire). Nit - the fire dept was there; it was initially deemed unsafe for them to commence fire operations because of the gunfire coming from the MOVE compound. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/30 "2022-01-12T14:20:27Z")
Counter nitpick: They had been using a water cannon to try and dislodge the roof bunker all day, then once the fire started they decided not to use it any more. Let’s recall the FD chief said the decision was made to let the fire burn. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/31 "2022-01-12T14:21:48Z")
And now 19 killed in a fire in Bronx, do we have a thread for that? What the fuck? This is the 21st century. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/32 "2022-01-12T14:32:48Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > And now 19 killed in a fire in Bronx, do we have a thread for that? [Yep.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huge-fire-in-the-bronx/957488) ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/33 "2022-01-12T20:57:27Z")
Counter-counter-nitpick: A conscious decision to let the fire burn is _not_ not responding. The bunker was a serious threat to people. When the bomb didn’t destroy it but started a fire, they figured the fire would destroy the bunker. Even once they realized, “Oh shit!” I believe they were still hampered in firefighting efforts by not putting firemen in harms way (of bullets). ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2022, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286/34 "2022-01-13T14:16:10Z")
Uh, The bunker had most certainly been taken out by the bomb. It was no longer an issue. They just decided to ‘smoke out’ the rest of MOVE. Sorry, much as I despise MOVE I cannot blame them for the incompetent firefighting response. At the very minimum the water cannon (which had been on _all day_ trying to dislodge the bunker) suddenly going unused is ineptitude or malice in the extreme. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/13-people-including-7-children-die-in-fire-in-house-owned-by-city-of-philadelphia/957286.md?page=1)