ncy; visitors tend to look for and respond to leadership from the staff and management. Consequently, they will not use escape routes that are unfamiliar to them, and the staff must ensure that secondary exits are clearly posted and utilized in an emergency (Idea Bank, 2000). Needless to say, the Cocoanut Grove had no such exits and no such plan.
Thus, when the crowd inside the Cocoanut Grove realized the building was on fire, they in effect became a panicked mob. They rushed the stairs and jammed the revolving door, which was locked (Burke, 1999). Others ran toward a door in the cocktail lounge, which opened inward and was quickly forced shut by the surging mass of frenzied patrons. Burke notes that nearly a quarter of the patrons who died in the fire were found behind this door (Burke, 1999). Furthermore, investigators also discovered that escaping toxic gas from a leaky air conditioning system fueled the fire. The resulting thick, noxious smoke killed quickly and efficiently; some vic
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