Hamlet Fire Outline Waite

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Research Paper Rough Draft Cover Page- Title: The Hamlet Chicken Processing Plant Fire Abstract- This paper examines the overview regarding the Hamlet Chicken Processing Plant Fire. Emmett Roe quickly began cutting several corners the moment he opened his doors. Soon, many violations began. Employees knew they should have fought against it but felt as if they could not unionize and win against the owner for fear of repercussions such as losing their jobs. Locked exterior doors; including a labeled fire door prevented the proper egress, emergency exits were not clearly lit, and some were in non-working condition for visibility. (NFPA 7.1, 2021). It was claimed that officers from the FDA had signed off multiple times allowing the locking of the doors stating it was keeping flies from entering the building to not contaminate the chicken. The plant now did not have a working sprinkler system, despite having routine fires, a precursor to what was soon to happen. (NFPA 9.7, 2021) September 1991, a day to remember, a small fire broke out at the processing plant also known as Imperial Foods, in a fryer from a failed hydraulic line which ultimately led to the demise of two dozen people and sent several to the hospital. The small town of Hamlet is still struck by heartbreak by this fire are dealing with the effects to this day. No one was able to exit the building as all the emergency exits and all the doors to the factory were locked shut from the exterior. This was a preventable tragedy due to someone deciding a penny earned is worth more than the people they employ lives. In the wake of the aftermath, the town of Hamlet was overcome with grief, outrage, and a renewed commitment in prevention of repeating the same horrors of what happened in Imperial Foods. The town continues to honor those who had fallen during the fire and soon after

erected a memorial in support of the victims. Every year on the anniversary of the fire, the community continues to gather and pay tribute who were affected. Despite the tragedy that ensued this led to several code changes throughout the United States which included the banning of inward swinging doors for means of egress (ICC 1010.1, 2018). All flammable decorations in any public establishment were banned from 1991 on and exit sign visibility became a requirement for all businesses. (IFC 801, 2018). Key items changed from the Hamlet Chicken Processing Fire and the Station Nightclub Fire is that they changed the threshold for mandatory sprinklers in Group A-2 occupancies from 300 occupants to 100. Introduction- Thesis: In the wake of the aftermath of the Hamlet Chicken Processing Fire, we are reminded of the critical importance of prioritizing worker safety over cost-cutting measures. Serving as a wake-up call, this tragedy emphasized the need for stronger labor protections and the importance of unions in safeguarding workers’ well-being in the town of Hamlet. The Hamlet Chicken Processing Plant fire was a heartbreaking moment for the town. It exposed systemic issues, instilled legal reforms, and forever changed the lives of those affected. The memory of that tragic day continues to shape Hamlet’s consciousness that the owner; Emmett J. Roe’s actions were reckless and indefensible , simply putting profit over the well-being and safety of his employees first. Locked exit doors prevented escape routes for workers during the fire, thus trapping them into the fire, leading to either succumb to their fire or suffer severe injuries. Body 1- Imperial Food Plants factory located in a tiny town in Hamlet, South Carolina. Owned by a man named Emmett Roe. Now, Emmett J. Roe once owned a plant in Pennsylvania but quickly was overcome with many OSHA violations, resulting in multiple fines ( Isidro-Cloudas, S.) . Emmett J. Roe then opened Imperial Foods in North Carolina and purposely did not register the business to ensure no one from the OSH office would come to inspect it. He preyed on the fact

this town was failing economically due to the loss of all the railroad work and its people were looking for work wherever they could find it. He knew the economy was slowed and OSH offices were underfunded at the time. Most were in favor for the local businesses than they were for the health and safety for the workers. In fact, at the time they had one federal OSH inspector for the worksites across the country. This made it virtually impossible to keep up with compliance. The plant had several violations prior to the plant, however most were not implemented nor did Emmett J. Roe receive citations for them. Imperial Foods was way behind in time for operation in the 1990s; it did not have a sprinkler system set up despite having routine fires. Per required, they did not even have an evacuation route in case of emergencies, nor a emergency action plan for the employees at the plant. (NFPA 9.14.4, 2021). Emmett J. Roe as owner, chose to lock the doors for all exits to the building during working hours to keep his employees from stealing chicken. This ultimately led to his guilty conviction later. It was claimed that FDA had signed off multiple times that locking the doors ultimately was ok as it was keeping flies from entering the building so they would not contaminate the chicken. The city of Hamlet also was noted to have lacked the appropriate funds to do the proper fire inspections as needed for the local businesses. If this had been done, a lot of these violations could have been caught prior to the event. The Hamlet fire underscores the critical importance of strict enforcement of safety regulations to prevent such devastating incidents. Despite being in a time where many fire and building codes were already implemented, this tragedy highlights the need for consistent enforcement and vigilance. Body 2- Although Emmett Roe had the facility open for nearly 11 years, the facility had not received even one safety inspection. This complied with no fire alarm system, absence of fire sprinkler system, no means of egress, failed hydraulic line which vaporized and ignited when it

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encountered the fryer’s flame, plus carbon monoxide and smoke led to so many injuries and deaths at the plant. After Emmett Roe spoke while on trial, his reasoning behind the locking of the doors was simply because he accused his employees of stealing chicken, and it was his way of keeping production moving faster and a method of theft prevention of the product moving throughout the plant. The exit doors being locked from the outside kept employees trapped inside the facility with the burning inferno. Many paths in the factory were obstructed, along with emergency exit lights not working which made visibility impossible. It was reported that one overhead door had a means of egress however, a delivery truck was blocking that one and only exit as the driver had fallen asleep waiting (Interfire, 1991). Employees had to rush to wake him up to move the truck to provide an evacuation route for employees trapped inside. Body 3- The aftermath Due to the lack of a fire alarm system within the plant, the fire department was not properly notified of the severity of the fire. Both phones working at the plant and at the fire department were non-functioning which led to a severe lack of communication. An employee who escaped the fire then had to run to the fire department to alert the department of the impeding fire that was happening. Hamlet’s Fire Department also was severely underfunded and operated solely by volunteers. This also added to the delay in response time. Lack of a fire suppression system had firefighters fighting an escalating and out of control fire. Adding to the lack of funding and support, they also did not have the proper training in industrial firefighting nor had the knowledge of the plant’s layout. They too, were obstructed by the locking of the exit doors, which impeded their rescue efforts.

In all, 25 employees succumbed to the fire and 40 were injured. This is out of a total of 81 employees that were working that day of the fire. Despite the lack of fire training response, from the medical side, they were much more prepared to handle such a disaster as this. In all, they had over 100 medics arrive at the scene to respond to the employees. The town of Hamlet was then able to dispatch four helicopters to rapidly respond to the most severely injured employees. Their swift response is the reason why those few were able to survive some of their most horrific injuries. Those who were severely burned were taken to burn units across the state. All medics were adequately prepared to help, and all hands were on deck for Hamlet. It didn’t take long before fingers began being pointed at Emmett J. Roe for his wrongdoing and blatant negligence for his employees’ well-being. Promptly, he pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter for his negligence. Where he was given a life sentence but died a few years later while serving his time in prison. The Hamlet Chicken Processing plant remained fined with over eighty-three different violations over this tragedy. Body 4- After the Imperial Foods fire, the North Carolina General Assembly immediately began implementing worker laws. In total, 14 new ones came out this. These laws aimed at allowing employees to report workplace safety violations without fear of repercussions ( Staff, F. E. 2020, April 29) . It also was a reminder to highlight the importance of implementing and enforcement of the life safety codes. Another recommendation that came from the fire report was to partition the cooking areas from other working areas to limit the spread of potential fire ( Interfire,1991 ) The Hamlet fire became a case study in fire safety training and disaster preparedness. Emergency responders and hospitals reviewed their protocols to better handle situations such as this in case a large-scale situation was to arise again.

The town of Hamlet showed resilience, but never forgetting the lives lost. People of Hamlet then pushed for stronger regulations and enforcement. The Imperial Foods fire emphasized the importance of labor unions in advocating for workers’ rights, something the people in the town of Hamlet had once been quiet about prior. One thing we’ve learned about them, they took this incident and began educating themselves on their rights, became voices for the victims, and prevailed. Conclusion- In summary, the failed hydraulic line repair, locked exits, and lack of safety inspections came together in synced harmony to create a horrific situation. The combination of locked exits, toxic smoke, sprinkler system failure, and the initial hydraulic line ignition caused a high death toll and high injury rate at Imperial Foods. The fire investigation highlighted serious violations in management, inspections, locked exits, and the toxic smoke’s impact. These contributed to the high death toll, making it the second deadliest industrial disaster in North Carolina’s history. Historical disasters like the Hamlet fire provide valuable lessons. We must learn from these tragedies to prevent similar incidents in the future. Labor unions play a huge role in advocating for workers’ rights and safety. Employees should feel empowered to raise safety concerns without fear of retaliation. Sprinkler systems are critical for fire suppression. Regular preventative maintenance and testing of these systems are also necessary, as learned from this tragedy they also are a huge tool for firefighters to control the fire effectively. Every workplace should have clear evacuation plans in case of emergencies. Properly marked, lit, and unobstructed exit routes are essential for all workplaces. Regular drills and training ensure that employees know how to respond during an emergency. Had there been an emergency response plan in place and egress made available for these employees, there may have been a

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different outcome. Most importantly, as Emmett Roe learned the hardest lesson, prioritizing profit over safety can have deadly consequences. References Interfire. (1991). TR-057, Chicken Processing Plant Fires Hamlet, North Carolina and Little Rock, Arkansas. In interfire.org (TR-057). https://www.interfire.org/res_file/pdf/Tr- 057.pdf International Code Council. (2019, January 11). Building Safety Journal - ICC . ICC. https://www.iccsafe.org/building-safety-journal/ International Code Council (ICC). (n.d.-a). 2021 INTERNATIONAL FIRE CODE (IFC) | ICC DIGITAL CODES . https://codes.iccsafe.org/content/IFC2021P1/chapter-8-interior-finish- decorative-materials-and-furnishings International Code Council (ICC). (n.d.-b). Digital codes . https://codes.iccsafe.org/s/IBC2018/chapter-10-means-of-egress/IBC2018-Ch10- Sec1010.1.2 Isidro-Cloudas, S. (n.d.). The Hamlet Chicken Processing Plant Fire and What We Can Learn from It . https://www.hallam-ics.com/blog/the-hamlet-chicken-processing-plant-fire-and- what-we-can-learn-from-it National Fire Protection Association. (2021a). Chapter 9.7 Automatic Sprinklers 2021 Edition . NFPA National Fire Codes Online. Retrieved February 17, 2024, from http://codesonline.nfpa.org

National Fire Protection Association. (2021b). Chapter 9.14.4 Emergency Action Plan 2021 . NFPA National Fire Codes Online. Retrieved February 17, 2024, from http://codesonline.nfpa.org National Fire Protection Association. (2021c). NFPA 7: Chapter 7 Means of Egress 2021 Edition . NFPA National Fire Codes Online. Retrieved February 17, 2024, from http://codesonline.nfpa.org Staff, F. E. (2020, April 29). Historical industrial fire: Imperial Foods . Fire Engineering. https://www.fireengineering.com/industrial-firefighting/historical-industrial-fire- imperial-foods/

Hamlet Fire Outline Waite

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