State of Illinois

The State of Illinois

Review of Fire Disaster and Building Safety

October 2003 – October 2004

On October 17, 2003, a deadly fire at the Cook County Administration Building claimed the lives of six people who were trapped in a locked stairwell. The disaster at the county's high-rise building located in the Central Chicago Loop District, impacted citizens and government leaders statewide and raised serious concerns regarding building safety, crisis preparedness and emergency response.

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich hired James Lee Witt Associates (JLWA) to conduct an independent emergency management and building code assessment evaluating the factors that contributed to the loss of lives.

The JLWA team was led by the former Deputy Director of the California Office of Emergency Services and the Incident Commander who had investigated the tragic bombing of the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. The team included world-renowned experts of human behavior during fires, as well as fire experts with the National Institute of Standards and Technology who developed a computer simulation to study the behavior of the fire.

The team reviewed events and issues that led to the tragedy, such as the presence of structural impediments that prevented victims from escaping; the absence of preventative devices, such as sprinkler systems; and department and building management protocols. The JLWA team examined evacuation procedures, emergency plans, training and exercises, and crisis communication efforts for building occupants, first responders, and government leaders.

JLWA worked directly with the Office of the Governor, the Deputy Chief of Staff for Public Safety and the Homeland Security Advisor and coordinated among the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, the Office of the State Fire Marshal, the Department of Labor, the Department of Professional Regulation, the State Highway Patrol and the Building Standards Commission.

The Witt Report included findings on what contributed to the spread of the fire and what led to the fatalities, as well as specific recommendations for the City of Chicago, Cook County, real estate owners, building management and building tenants to prevent future loss of life and property in high-rise buildings. It also suggested a course of action for supporting local units of government, the private sector and the public in strengthening fire safety for commercial and residential high-rise buildings.

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