The Iroquois Theatre fire happened on December 30, 1903 in Chicago, Illinois. It was the deadliest single-building fire in United States history. At least 602 people died as a result of the fire, but not all the deaths were reported, as some of the bodies were removed from the scene. Blocked fire exits and the lack of a fire-safety plan caused most of the deaths. Everyone used the same entrance, and the broad stairs leading off the foyer to the balcony level were also used to reach the stairs to the gallery level. Theater designers claimed this allowed patrons to "see and be seen". But the common stairway ignored Chicago fire ordinances that required separate stairways and exits for each balcony. The design proved disastrous, as people exiting
