The Cleveland Clinic X-Ray Incident | A Short Documentary | Fascinating Horror

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TLDW: In 1929 a fire started in the basement caused by an exposed light bulb being too close to cellulose film used for x rays. 123 people died.

👍︎︎ 14 👤︎︎ u/mr_thn_i_cn_stnd 📅︎︎ Aug 04 2021 🗫︎ replies

Safety improvements are born in blood.

👍︎︎ 8 👤︎︎ u/[deleted] 📅︎︎ Aug 04 2021 🗫︎ replies

Love this channel. All his content is great

👍︎︎ 20 👤︎︎ u/AnneFrank_nstein 📅︎︎ Aug 03 2021 🗫︎ replies

The music on this channel always creeps me out

👍︎︎ 5 👤︎︎ u/floofnstuff 📅︎︎ Aug 04 2021 🗫︎ replies

I built a new Cleveland Clinic facility that connected to an old one. It was about a 5 year project, and before it was over there was a fire at the existing facility. This historical event came to mind.

The new ones are very well built though. I did all of the Fireproofing and Passive Fire Protection on this one, and have a great attention to detail.

👍︎︎ 2 👤︎︎ u/Safety_Sudden 📅︎︎ Aug 04 2021 🗫︎ replies

I love this guy's channel. Does a good job with research and delivery

👍︎︎ 1 👤︎︎ u/Stramatelites 📅︎︎ Aug 04 2021 🗫︎ replies

Maaaaannnnn I was trying to remember the name of this channel! Thank you!

👍︎︎ 1 👤︎︎ u/mmmmpisghetti 📅︎︎ Aug 03 2021 🗫︎ replies

that fucking horrible. jesus christ.

👍︎︎ 1 👤︎︎ u/yul_brynner 📅︎︎ Aug 03 2021 🗫︎ replies
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On the 15th of May, 1929, hundreds of doctors,  nurses and patients were going about their   business in the outpatient building of the  Cleveland Clinic - a modern (and in some ways   revolutionary) healthcare center in Cleveland,  Ohio. At around 11:30am the upper floors of the   clinic were suddenly flooded with a thick  yellowish-brown gas. Those who inhaled it   were dead within moments, never knowing or  understanding exactly what had killed them.   The Cleveland Clinic opened its doors  to patients on the 28th of February,   1921. It was very much ahead of its time.  The clinic was a single not-for-profit   organization that would be a base of operations  for professionals with a range of specialties.   Its mission was to provide patient care, education  and opportunities for valuable medical research.   In this it was certainly successful. Among many  other contributions, the Cleveland Clinic helped   to revolutionize the treatment of people with  diabetes by making use of the, then relatively   new, drug insulin. It was also consistently at  the forefront of cardiac medicine, while at the   same time pushing relentlessly for better, more  comfortable conditions for patients in wards.   Year on year the Cleveland Clinic grew, going  from a single building to a complex of several,   including a four-storey outpatient  clinic along with an adjoining hospital   and several houses designed to provide  lodgings for patients undergoing   long-term treatment. For eight years the Cleveland  Clinic was an extraordinary force for good   in the world. The 15th of May, 1929, began  just like any other day at the clinic.   The outpatient building was busy, filled with  doctors, nurses, patients and visitors. Being   an outpatient building meant that there were no  wards or beds. Everyone attending the clinic that   day was there for investigations or treatments  that would see them home again by the evening.   The fire began down in a sub-basement room  which was used to store x-ray film. In 1929,   x-rays made use of nitrocellulose film - a  volatile substance that could easily catch fire.   Moreover, when it burned it produced poisonous  gases, and resisted the use of water to   extinguish any flames. In fact, immersing burning  nitrocellulose film in water would usually only   increase the production of poisonous gases.  The exact cause of the fire is uncertain, but   many sources blame an unprotected light bulb  that was situated too close to a stack of film.   Whatever the cause, once at least  some of the film had ignited   the rest soon followed, creating a powerful blaze  which produced huge quantities of poisonous gas.   This gas seeped slowly up into the building  proper, initially going largely unnoticed.   Its progress was slow enough to  cause no disruption or alarm.   As the fire consumed more film, however, the  situation worsened significantly: caches of film   ignited en masse, resulting in two explosions -  the blasts from which not only severely damaged   the fabric of the building, but also had the  deadly effect of blasting the gas through pipes,   doors, vents and conduits into every part of the  building. Now, rather than seeping slowly up from   the basement, the gas was everywhere. Doctors and  nurses were killed before being able to rise from   their desks. Patients died in moments, having  scarcely registered the presence of the gas. It   enveloped people so quickly that they often had no  time to even think about escaping. An Associated   Press report from the day detailed the conditions  that were found in the aftermath of the disaster:   "Surgical equipment lay ready for use in the  examining rooms. In the x-ray developing room   a roll of film was stretched to dry. A wheelchair  with the blanket thrown aside blocked a balcony   overlooking the waiting room. A stenographer's  half-finished letter was found in an office.   Everything was abandoned as the victims realized   too late that the brown fumes curling through  door casings and along the halls carried death." Passers-by outside the hospital heard the  explosions and rushed to help... only to be struck   down by the gas themselves, or to find themselves  quite unable to render aid to those inside. "The fumes were so strong as to act almost  instantly. Pedestrians caught outside the building   fell to the ground and lay unconscious until  dragged to safety when the gas lifted. One woman   smashed a third-floor window and was preparing  to leap as firemen spread a life net. She stood   poised. The amber gas swirled about her shoulders,  and she collapsed... falling inside the building." Rescuers converged on the clinic, but their  efforts were hampered by the lingering gas.   One witness reported being overcome when still  almost a city block away from the clinic.   Police, ambulance and fire personnel had to get  much closer than that if they were to have any   hope of rescuing anybody. In many cases it  was only when the gas had dissipated that a   rescue could be made, although several people were  willing to risk - and indeed sacrifice - their own   lives in order to drag patients to safety.  Policeman Ernest Staab, just 30 years old,   entered the building again and again, despite  visible fumes still hanging in the air.   He dragged 21 people away from the  choking vapor before he was overcome   and passed away. Though he gave his life  in the course of affecting a rescue,   several of those he dragged from  the building went on to survive. In the aftermath of the disaster the clinic was  devastated. The building was severely damaged   from the explosions, and it looked as though  operations could not possibly continue...   until a local philanthropist, Samuel Mather,  stepped in and provided alternate premises nearby.   This meant that the Cleveland Clinic could  continue treating patients, including those who   had suffered serious damage to their lungs from  inhaling even tiny amounts of the poisonous gas.   In many cases recovery was a slow and painful  process, if it was possible at all. Patients were   given oxygen, but often this was not sufficient,  with some victims dying weeks after the disaster.   In total the incident claimed the lives of  123 people and severely injured many more. In the aftermath of the disaster, and as the  cause could not be positively identified,   it was found that the hospital was  not at fault. The way in which the   x-ray film had been stored was in line  with what was required at the time.   To address this, the guidelines for the storage of  not just film but many other hazardous materials   were revised. The horror of the Cleveland Clinic  disaster had so captured the public's attention   that this reform extended beyond Ohio, and  was applied nationwide - something which may   well have prevented numerous other disasters.  Ultimately the Cleveland Clinic would survive.   The building was completely renovated and  restored, and remains in place to this day.   Now, however, it's part of a sprawling  complex of medical facilities.   The Cleveland Clinic has grown from a handful  of buildings to a huge campus, and has further   establishments all over the city and beyond.  It's one of the best-rated hospitals in America,   and is consistently among the best in the world  for cardiac care. In line with its original   ethos, it provides patient care, teaching  facilities and opportunities for research...   but on a scale which its founders could never  possibly have imagined. The Cleveland Clinic   disaster is a footnote in its history - a tragic  series of events that cost 123 people their lives.   The clinic has gone on, however, to save and  transform the lives of hundreds of thousands.
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Channel: Fascinating Horror
Views: 1,172,272
Rating: undefined out of 5
Keywords: ASMR, ASMR Horror, Horror, True Horror, Horror Story, Horror Stories, Horror Storytelling, Storytelling, Seconds From Disaster, Strange But True, Unsolved Mystery, Ride Accident, Theme Park Accident, Worst Accidents, Creepy, Creepypasta, True Creepypasta, Creepypasta Stories, I Survived, History, Documentary, Disaster Documentary, True Story, Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland Clinic, Hospital, Explosion, Gas, Film, Nitrate Film, Volatile Film, Cleveland Clinic History, X-Ray Incident, Fire
Id: 9QcdijaKdAY
Channel Id: undefined
Length: 9min 55sec (595 seconds)
Published: Tue Aug 03 2021
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