The hard reality is that there will always be disasters - but fortunately they are MUCH less frequent now. It seems like in earlier times buildings used to catch fire left and right.
"The orchestra that had provided music for the evening performances continued to play until the arena was almost empty of spectators" That bit gave me some Titanic vibes
It reminds me of soldiers in trenches under fire. Some of them will revert to basic repeatable actions until someone redirects them. Such as gun cleaning, reloading, moving supplies, ect. The musicians playing might just be them reverting to their basic training to cope with the situation.
@@jeanglendinning1860 I do remember one circus disaster on this channel where the circus band switched to playing "The Stars and Stripes Forever", which in that context was a covert signal of an emergency to the rest of the circus's own stagehands while it also helped to keep the evacuating audience members calm. Apparently the use of that particular march for that purpose is a very common practice even now, which is interesting for a tune that most people remember as "that Sousa march with the piccolo solo that you often hear on the 4th of July".
my grandfather was a nurse in his twenties at the time, and he was there that night. from my understanding, he helped pull survivors out of the wreckage and used his medical knowledge to help with first aid where he could. he doesn't like to talk about what he saw, and i won't pry, but he never went back to the fairgrounds after he left in the early hours of the next morning. he avoided the area for six decades, up until last year. my high school graduation ceremony took place in the coliseum, and he made the decision to stop running from the memories so he could attend. he loves me enough to step foot in a place he'd been desperately avoiding for over sixty years, and he relived those memories so that he could celebrate with the rest of our family. my heart aches not only for those who lost their lives in such a horrific fashion, but also for people like my grandfather, who suffered through surviving.
I got myself some goosebumps reading that. What a touching story and what a guy your grandfather must be. Not sure if he's still with you, but if he is, I hope he gets as many years as he wanted. If not, my condolences and respects to you and yours, seems like a good guy. What a story ❤
He was not the only person who jumped in to help. Every medically trained person, as well as many others assisted. I was a child when it occurred but we had tickets for a performance in November. While the disaster was horrible it was uncovered in the investigation that the tanks were extras/spares that had been overlooked and not mainstained.
There were male nurses back then?? Nursing schools in the US didn't start accepting men into their programs until 1982. And that was only after a Supreme Court ruling.
My great grandfather* (see edit) was killed in the explosion. Other family members were also there, but had stepped out of the performance area (I believe to use the restroom or get snacks). You can find his name on the plaque located near the entrance of the coliseum. I'd like to point out to other commenters here, there was no one mistake made or individual responsible in this incident. The normalization of deviance will consume any corporation, business, or organization. It consumed the fire marshal's office, the Coliseum Corporation, and Discount Gas, and it will continue to be a problem so long as humans are a factor in the operation of infrastructure. Edit: I've since been informed that it was not my great uncle, but my great grandfather. Unfortunately, I never met him as he passed away far before I was born. My family tends to not talk about it too much, but any time we're at a Fuel game we always stop by the plaque and quietly reflect amidst the chaos of the Coliseum's entrance.
It’s almost always negligence or laziness or a combination of the two in these videos. And in most cases, no one responsible for the disaster ends up facing adequate consequences for their failings.
My mom was 9 when this happened and they lived about a mile north of the coliseum. My grandparents wanted to take her to the show but she wanted to go trick or treating instead. Unfortunately this event wasn’t the only tragedy to take place at the these fairgrounds. A temporary stage collapsed into a crowd in 2011, killing 7 and injuring almost 60 more. It happened directly across the street from the coliseum.
I've lived in Indiana my whole life and have NEVER heard about this incident. I remember the 2011 incident well though... 😢 I was in school when I heard about it. Made me not want to attend any big events like that again. However, I do go to my town's local festivals every year. They're pretty small, but they draw a big crowd.
The grandstand can be seen on the right side of the aerial shot. It was across from there where the stage blew apart. I grew up in Indiana and only learned of the Holiday on Ice disaster a few years ago. As part of a HS marching band competition we marched before that grandstand on the dirt track. When we were setting up, we could hear Jefferson Starship sound checking inside the Coliseum which I think was called the Pepsi Coliseum. My mom took us to see Liza Minnelli there @1973 too.
That was one of my first major memories growing up. It was so strange hearing about something that took so many lives in such a tragic way in the state I live in.
My grandfather owned a candy shop in downtown Indianapolis at the time. He rented a booth at the fairgrounds at the time during events selling caramel apples. The week before, someone stole his car, and he had to get a ride for him and his product. The bus lines didn't run real late that far out, so he had to leave early leaving trays etc. To be picked up in the morning. You can see remnants of his candy booth in the picture of the tanks. This story always wows me.
He definitely saw the theft as a blessing. He would have never survived. There is an infamous picture (it wasn't used here) and you can see the destroyed caramel apples sign. No way He would have survived.
My grandma & grandpa had tickets for this show, and had plans to take my Mom & Aunt to the show. Their tickets were right in the middle of the blast. At the last minute, a Major General showed up at the air base and with my grandpa being a commanding officer, he had to stay late to greet him. Grandpa told me that he was grumpy and cussing the whole time because he had to cancel their trip to Indy. The next day when he saw the news, he bought the MG a bottle of Jim Beam whiskey and thanked him. Funny how life works out.
Wow. Just think there was probably somebody thrilled that there were some empty seats in front of them that gave them some extra leg room. "Must be my lucky day," 😢
I grew up in Indiana and remember this awful event. My brother in law’s father was an orthopedic surgeon. When he got word of the explosion, he asked the neighbor lady to watch his children and left for the hospital. He was gone for 3 days and nights. There were so many badly injured. He worked non stop. God bless him.
I’m somewhat surprised that a company with a name like “discount gas” didn’t sound sketchy to other people (as if they took cost cutting measures). I’m also surprised by the crowd behavior right after the explosion, seems to be more rare in events like this
The primary factor in determining the actions of a crowd in a situation like this, especially after the implementation of mandatory school fire drills, is the availability of exits. As long as the crowd is able to keep moving at a reasonable pace, people will just keep filing out.
There’s a company in my area called something like Discount Casket and Funerary. Every time I pass it, the name makes me laugh a little. It’s just _so_ direct and to the point in a way that isn’t common for business names.
@@Annie_Annie__ This is one area where I hope my family will cut corners. I’ll be dead ffs. Save that money for yourselves and keep my ashes in a Chock Full O’ Nuts Can!
"no one was directly.. blah blah" THEY HAD NO PERMIT TO STORE THAT GAS THERE.. SOMEONE had to know that needed a permit and chose to ignore it.. it is amazing how often a judge or court is "kind" to liable companies but throw the book at a single individual for the exact same actions.. "ignorance of the law is no excuse"
A piece of government red tape existing in a filing cabinet wouldn't make it not explode. The problem was storing the gas indoors and not maintaining the canisters.
That's quite an assumption. Did you not listen to what they said? The gas company didn't inform them of the proper use and storage of the tanks (which was not likely nearly as regulated as today), and likely didn't know where they were being stored, and the people who stored them likely did not understand the dangers of having them otherwise stored properly and inspected where they were stored.
Why do you assume that anyone knew they needed that permit? It seems reasonable to me that someone was told to move the gas canisters because the space they were occupying was needed for something else, and then the only space that wasn't already occupied was in that room, and that person didn't know enough to doubt putting them in there.
@@TheEarthCreature Did you do any research outside this video? The fire department was indicted in this case as well. They knew about the tanks and had inspected the venue many times before. In the end it was just easier to sue a company with insurance than it is to try to sue a negligent government.
The minute you mentioned LPG I screamed in surprise. What the hell were they doing keeping LPG inside a building. LPG is known for its explosive properties,
How horrible! Had never heard of this. Seems like it was quickly forgotten until 2002. And "Discount " is not a word you want to associate with volatile gasses.
It is truly sad that it took until 2002 for those who lost their lives to be memorised by the hanging of that plaque listing the names of the victims. That should have been done within the first few years after the disaster.
"Was designed to create jobs, bolster infrastructure.." and create very poor quality structures that constantly fail within 60-70% of their estimated lifespan instead of 120-200%. Welcome to AmericaWorks-type programs =p
@@billmadison2032 It's pretty stupid to do the 'shaking my head' thing about this. It's not the amazing point you wish it were, and btw Australia isn't 'British' but people like you never understand simple things like that
@@jamescarter3196 you need to learn punctuation I made a comment about this video and then made a comparison of the problem of fake news, hence Sky News Australia. You need to chill out and not be so quick to shit on people
It frustrates me how the people in charge of these companies with wealth and power almost always seem to avoid getting consequences for their negligent actions when stuff like this goes so horribly wrong.
The owners didn't even face one charge. Also the plaque should read: here's all the people who died due to negligence - whose families didn't even receive 10% of the amount they should have.
I knew exactly what happened when I saw the title of the vid. Corp/persons responsible charged, convicted, conviction set aside, some money given to someone as if it would make up for the horror. This is how justice works in the USA. There is only justice for those with the money to buy it.
It seems to be a common theme in a lot of these. Back in the day. Various people that were responsible getting arrested and charged and then it gets dropped.
They conveniently only go after people with money . Suing individual workers who probably made minimum wage at the time would get the lawyers zero in the amount of compensation. By suing companies and cities themselves the insurance companies will pay out a lot more than some low level convention center employee who probably doesn’t have many assets.
The title cut off for me and I thought it said "The State of Indiana" and I was about to be like "Man, Indiana alone is a horror story in itself, huh?"
I lived in northern Indiana in '63, I was a little kid, and my father was a radio announcer. I don't remember hearing about this at all! It just shows how fast and furious news travels in this day and age. Even as a little kid, I knew about the Holocaust, the Titanic, Pearl Harbor - but never heard about this. Well done, sir! Always appreciate your hard work.
I bet your parents shielded you from hearing about this because it WAS so immediate to you. Those other things were “long ago and far away”. Parents back in the day didn’t let kids hear about bad things. AND it was easy by not turning on the nightly news and just giving the kids the funny pages and keeping the first page away.
@@NancyD2 I was never "protected" from the news. I vividly remember being at the radio station with my dad when the AP teletype would go off, and we'd all run in there to see what the news was. I watched the nightly news EVERY night, with the whole family watching, The Vietnam "televised war", the assassination of JFK, the Beatles, even Johnny Carson. Maybe I heard about this and it wasn't anything life shattering to me, like some of the other stuff. No, I was always exposed to current events. With my father in the media, I was not "protected".
@@SalisburySnake Oh wow! Never thought of that. Thanks! Well, and then the Beatles in February on Ed Sullivan. No idea how old you are, but our world revolved around the Beatles at that point.
My Mom grew up in a German-immigrant farming community on the near southside of Indy, and was in her early 20s when this happened. She talked about it from time to time, and always mentioned how everyone knew someone who had been injured or killed at the Coliseum explosion. In her case, it was a teenage child of one of the other families in the community. I was always somewhat mystified that there wasn't a memorial (until the plaque mentioned), but the Coliseum has always been a fairly busy place, including constant use during the State Fair each year. I can imagine no one wanted the reminder.
Sounds like she was from the Fountain Square area or just a little north of there. When I-70 was constructed, it destroyed &/or cut off several historic ethnic neighborhoods.
@@BooBooKittyFuzzyBritches Bluff Road & Epler. Back in the day, Bluff Rd was nothing but German immigrant farming families from the same general northwestern area of (at that time) West Germany. My Grandparents' farm backed up to Adrian Orchards. FWIW, my Grandma met a good-looking young German immigrant in the fall of 1959 and decided that one of her daughters was going to marry him. So yeah, I spent many a childhood summer weekend stuffed into a dirndl dress and dragged along to picnics at the German -American Klub. I kinda miss those days, honestly. Still visit the GAK on occasion.
The popularity of memorials depends on the culture at the time. It seems like for non-war related memorials, these were less common or popular in the past than they are now.
FWIW, Howard Caldwell was a mainstay on WRTV Channel 6 for decades out of Indianapolis. He was a real professional, an old school journalist. Decades after his retirement and later death in 2017, there are lots of us Hoosiers who still miss him.
That’s why I’m hyper fixated on these tragedies, not for the lives lost or any kind of twisted fascination but for the changes that come about in policy. Like the sinking of the titanic and how it indirectly lead to the Eastland disaster as well, due to changes in life boats. (Though in the end that was mostly greed in the owners end)
The USCSB channel here on the toob is full of recreations of industrial and commercial accidents like this, and it's always either laziness or cheapness. Some plant manager doesn't want to spend .30 per employee on a safety measure and then three weeks later there's an explosion that levels half the facility, kills five workers, leaks toxic material into the community, and costs millions in cleanup and fines.
You sadly failed to understand. It was never the safety regulations. It was the ENFORCEMENT of the safety regulations that failed. You can have all the regulations known to man and they would do you not an iota of good if they were never enforced. This video's conclusion that it is somehow safer when no one was ever held accountable is a bit naïve.
It is amazing how many people are still blaming the gas company and Fairground management. Some tragedies are caused not by corporate greed, but by many people making individually inconsequential mistakes that form a very unlikely series of events that snowballs into catastrophe. This is one of those times. The only person whose individual actions substantively caused this explosion are those of the employee who opened the door and didn't immediately close it again, but we can accept that this person didn't understand the mechanics of a gas explosion. Why can't people also accept that the lack of a permit does not equal the knowledge that a permit is required? Why can they not accept that a business (and thereby it's owner) can be responsible for the actions of their employees that contribute to a tragedy without being personally criminally liable? There is no straight line from what the employees at the fairgrounds chose to do with the canisters back to the owner of the gas company. Yes, if any individual along the chain of events had been more knowledgeable, this would not have happened, but you tell me, which person was it, or are they all responsible for the cumulative effects of everyone's actions and not just their own? If the juries back then with far more evidence than we have here couldn't figure it out, who are we to pass judgement? Do not think that I'm defending corporate greed; it is usually responsible. But this time, there just isn't sufficient evidence that the gas company did anything but deliver the canisters, look at where they were asked to place them, and decide that that was a good spot. As the delivery driver was not charged, I think we are safe in believing that he didn't deliver them to the unventilated room under the stands. Were there things the gas company could have said or done that would have prevented this tragedy? Obviously yes, but does that require them to also make the intuitive leap that someone at the fairgrounds would do something, which was to them, inconceivably stupid? Also yes, and that isn't a fair standard. That's like expecting some other parent to be responsible for your child petting a lion.
The gas company I'd agree isnt liable. Its not their job nor should it be to police where the canisters go . The fairgrounds however absolutely are responsible. You cannot operate a big business like a fairgrounds and aaalll the permits it takes (occupancy, fire, livestock, food, human waste, building etc) and not have a reasonable inclination to suspect this might be a thing you should ask about. I'm not in construction but I know I probably need permits to build a shed, outhouse, deck , demolish a structure or to rewire my house. Maybe I dont need them all but I know its on me to find out not do as I please and be immune from the ramifications of my deliberate ignorance. The management or who ever was in charge really never thought about empty canisters or storage huh? Management that worries about the time, number and duration of the shits of each and every employee just couldn't think maybe find out about that? Companies that make it their job to know exactly how many cups are at refreshment stand and down to the ticket how many and where every roll is just lost track of the canisters? No they didn't, they could have and choose not to because they didn't want to. Policing their trash doesn't generate profit so who cares. I bet they knew exactly which dumpster was full, which needed replaced and where tho I go along with the dumpsters experiencing illegal dumping by the public so they can lock those....but canisters of explosive fuel? Nah, tooo hard. Cannot believe people buy any businesses bullshit. They are all liars, its what they do...lie and charm to convince you to do as they wish.
Well said. A hundred different actions by a hundred different people, acting not necessarily out of evil but rather ignorance, came together in a tragic way. People today have watched too many Marvel movies, and believe everything that happens is good vs evil. People are dumb. Tragedies happen.
People want to find someone to blame bc they are afraid. They don't want to accept that sometimes bad things just happen. We have become a society of finger-pointers.
"Only one person was found guilty, and this was later overturned." TO THE SURPRISE OF ABSOLUTELY NOBODY. At least people were compensated. I suppose the guilty people would have been punished by the weight of their own consciense.
Yeah, like Norfolk Southern stock holders & management are crippled by the magnitude of the East Palestine wreck? Like the Sacklers are crushed by the opiate deaths they caused? Sociopaths have no conscience!
That's cause when you sue the company, they will tend to settle out of court. When you try to sue the CEO of the company they won't face charges. the CEO doesn't know that Moron Morris had allowed people to place explosive gas, he brought, under seats in a venue. The owner of the building didn't know that Lazy Lou put the tanks under seats so he could go on his 5th smoke break of that hour.
It was a different era where tragedies like this weren’t dwelled on for too long. Perhaps it was a mindset leftover from a generation that lived through WWII, where people were used to horrors and moved on with life. I also suspect that the assassination of President Kennedy less than a month later shifted attention away from this tragedy.
Same! I grew up here and go to the state fair every year too! My friend even works for Indiana Farmers. Guess I don’t know as much about my city as I thought I did.
Maybe "putting the story away" helps keep the pain away. Maybe I see things differently, but all these anniversaries of tragedies seems a bit much. Nobody in my family has been involved in a tragedy so I can't say what I'd do, but I think if they had, I'd grieve privately.
Lived my entire life in Indianapolis but have never heard of this event. It's wild that we have had such a devastating disaster that I have never heard of. The only Indiana State Fairgrounds disaster I knew of before this was the 2011 stage collapse, which killed seven. I had no idea that the fairgrounds had previously had an even more devastating event earlier in its history.
Thank you for doing this one! So many people who live here don't know about this tragedy. My uncle was at a bar nearby when the explosion happened and he said he ran over to help pull bodies onto the ice. If you go there now, the section of seats that exploded is a special section dedicated to those who died. You can see it in the top of the frame at 7:33.
I was 9 yrs old at the time, living at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. Our aunts and uncles were supposed to be in attendance that night, but at the last minute they didn't go. Thank God!
Nice job ! Never knew about the explosion 💥, I love to learn even if I’m getting on with my age & don’t work any more !! I was told as a young man that if you stop learning than there’s nothing to live for !!!
We live in a world where things from yesteryear are scrubbed hidden or removed due to modern sensibilities denying us the ability to know how we got here and mistakes that were made and learn from them. Your channel does a wonderful job of recording these tragedy’s and the effect they have had and most importantly the lessons learned from such events. Thank you
The crane mentioned in this video was provided by Dotlich crane. This business has been run by my family for generations, and is still operating in Indianapolis.
I grew up a few miles from this arena, In the '70s one of my scout leaders told us the story about being there with his family the night of the explosion. They all survived, fortunately, but they'd never forget that night.
I have been to several events at the Coliseum over the years. This explosion happened 7 years before I was born, but I had always heard about it. Thank you for covering this tragedy. I learned a lot of things about it that I hadn't previously known.
Fantastic job! My grandparents had tickets to this show but my grandfather had to work late that night. One of their friends who they were supposed to go with said that they could never go back to the Coliseum again after everything they saw. If they had gone I probably wouldn't be here today. Also everyone at the Indiana State archives is probably going to be watching this now lol I used to work there for about 11-12 years and told them about this video!
We was told & taught about THIS HORRIBLE DISASTER in Indiana History Class. (Small school 40 miles from Indianapolis). I CANNOT BELIEVE HOW MANY HOOSIERS HAVE NO IDEA THIS HAPPENED.. My Father talked about this. I am 61 years old & think about this every year we volunteer at the Pioneer Village at the Indiana State Fair.
I agree, this is a go to for the star, as well as channel 13 when looking back at things, but it seems people phase out when hearing the words "fair grounds"
I'm a civil engineer, and 1 of my latest projects is updating various oil spill plans, stormwater management, haz mat, etc. I can definitely see how this sort of mistake could happen. The number of times I've had to call this company and ask "ok, are you SURE that's all the oil? what do you MEAN there's another 100-1000 gal tank just chillin!? where is it and what's in it???" Legally, these plans, inspections, and inventories MUST be updated every time there's a change (and certified by a professional engineer), but oftentimes they just...don't. People copy out of date info from previous versions, temporary changes or moves can become permanent, facility owners/managers don't want to go through the hassle of getting their plans re-certified by a professional engineer (as they legally must), etc. Luckily, my engineering firm is very responsible and ensures we do good work, but it's easy to imagine something slipping through the cracks, especially since we can't always physically inspect facilities ourselves, and rely on the info we're getting to be accurate. Also, we can TELL a company they Have To Follow The Rules, Actually, but once we write up the management/emergency plans, or design the structure, or give our Official Engineering Advice(tm), we can't actively enforce or monitor what actually goes on. (We do have a legal and ethical duty to report violations and failures if we can't remedy them, and act as "whistle blowers" if need be, but we're not government inspectors, and our access is limited) This channel has been a huge inspiration for me for years, before I even graduated college. It gives a good motivation to make sure my work and clients DONT end up on this channel. It's a good reminder that even the boring paperwork and routine work is important and can have major consequences
Indiana native, never heard of this. Thanks! I just can't believe those ridiculous ice skating shows have been around so long. Now I am just waiting to see the disaster unfold that ends with the cause being underlying structural issues resulting from an explosion in 1963...
Hey, nice! I had suggested this. Good to see my oft-forgotten home state get the spotlight--even if it is for something like this. Everybody around here knows about the State Fairgrounds, but not many remember this tragedy. For all the devastation, the fairgrounds is still an active, beloved venue in the city. I've been there for many concerts and hockey games, and I've always had a great time.
Although 81 casualties are 81 too many, the structural quality of the building probably saved many more. Looks like just the gas-filled section of the stand was compromised and not much else, and if only by flying chunks of concrete. Just seven weeks to repair and reopen is pretty amazing and a testament to the building.
I cant believe I've never learned about this. I think everyone was in such a state of shock, panic stayed at a minimum. This entire disaster was shockingly avoidable. Thanku for another excellent video.
I honestly cannot tell you how many times I've watched videos on this channel and literally said out loud, "How in the hell have I never heard about this before?"
May I recommend you cover the 1949 Effingham, IL USA, Hospital Fire. I worked in the medical community there for years and thought of this tragedy regularly. I would often run into some of the people involved with the event in some way. The entire story has not been told in a well prepared video to my knowledge. I believe it still stands as the largest hospital fire in the USA but I may be wrong.
Worked at the coliseum for a number of years. I actually lived in 1 of the 8 total apartments that were in the building. Heard noises and saw things that didn’t make sense. Always felt creepy in the back hallway and tunnel where the explosion happened. Side note: they used the ice as a temporary morgue that night. A co-worker of mine was helping out during the tragedy and has always said the scene was way worse than ever shown or explained.
These mini documentaries are so well put together, narrated, and edited, that with deep respect to the subject matter, they are so informative and enjoyable. I wonder if teachers use them as tools for imparting history lessons to students. I personally learn a lot from watching these and thank the creators for sharing them.
Years before TH-cam, I found out about this smaller disaster and wanted to do a documentary about it. It's so obscure, yet terrifying and sad. I'm glad someone is covering this, because I was too lazy to put it together and missed the opportunity. Thanks for making this. It's worth memorializing!
Finally talking about one of the great disasters in my state’s history. Thanks for bringing attention to it! If you want some more Indiana content, talk about the 2011 state fair stage collapse or the 1987 Ramada Corsair crash
You should look into the Indiana State Fairgrounds stage collapse on August 13, 2011, if you haven't already covered it. Seven killed and almost 60 other injured at an outdoor concert in some pretty bad weather. My partner was at the fairgrounds, but not the concert; his group left prior to the incident, because of the weather. Another couple of my friends were driving on the highway, not too far from the fairgrounds, at the time. They both specifically remember feeling like the Jeep they were in was going to be blown over.
I'm an Indy native and have been to the Fairgrounds many times, but I'm sad to say that I never knew about this tragedy until today. I'll have to find the plaque when I'm there next time and pay my respects.
this isn't the first time I've heard of musicians continuing to play throughout the chaos.... it's kind of remarkable. I'm a musician. Would I continue? I'm not sure.
My grandparents and dad remember this well. I’ve seen the plaque, though I didn’t find out about this disaster until about a year ago. The local hockey team plays there, and there is always a lot going on in that building for the State Fair. It’s a little unsettling to think about the scale of the disaster that happened there.
Then fortunately for you, you haven't seen or heard many Halloween stories of tragedy. No disrespect implied. I've been a student of true crime for 22 years now. Needless to say, I've seen some pretty horrifying stuff.
@@simulantmind2204 I know there are many real life Halloween stories worse than this one but saying it's the "3rd or 10th or 50th worst" just doesn't sound right.
My mom was about to turn 8 at the time. She had a ticket to go with her mom, but she got sick and stayed home. They gave the tickets to neighbor boys. They survived unharmed, as far as I know. If someone mentions the Fairgrounds Coliseum explosion on Indianapolis nostalgia Facebook groups, the comments are full of fascinating memories and family stories. I went to the Coliseum countless times while growing up in the 90s and 00s. Ice skating, state fairs, hockey games, exhibitions, circuses, etc. Every time, I glanced at the commemorative plaque at the entrance. The fact that stuck out for me was how the ice rink became... a morgue. Very spooky. On a more cheerful note, the Beatles played there less than a year later. I've always been grateful my mom got sick that night. PS - I now work in the tallest building in the city. As I type this comment, I keep glancing out the window at the Coliseum, 4 or 5 miles to the north and easily visible. PPS - Both of my parents witnessed the other Indiana State Fairgrounds disaster, the 2011 fatal stage collapse. They were walking in the parking lot behind it, so they were not injured. They were definitely shaken up by the scene afterwards, though.
My grandfather was the lieutenant governor of the state of Indiana at this time. It is a family legend how sick he was during this time. Literally physically ill.
Given the usual lapses in judgment and the usual escaping of punishment by those responsible, the only surprising here unfortunately is that people *didn't* stampede when it would have been semi-justified for once (even if it would have of course worsened things even more). Huh.
Teah, I was like "Oh no" when people started mass evacuating. But apprently they didn't lock exits or even pile random stuff in front of them! What a nice surprise.
I've heard that since a quite a few of the attendees were WWII combat veterans and their training and experiences let to them remaining calm in the face of disaster
My grandmother was ten when this horrible tragedy happened it is truly horrible what happened she knew a girl whose mother was there when the explosion happened. I hope to god nothing like this happens again in Indiana or any other state or country
You reminded me of the Titanic, when you said "the band continued to play til the arena was almost empty." Surely there's a place in heaven for musicians who play in the face of disaster. Two scary words; discount gas😐
Of course, the stage collapse in 2011 was horrifying, but I never even heard of this 1963 event, until today. I know that it took a decade until the sense of slight unease when I would go to the State Fair would dissipate. I guess it took a global pandemic to take my mind off of what happened in 2011, so I really can't imagine the severity or consequences of what happened in 1963. Wow. Tomorrow isn't promised, guys. Make what you will of that.
I agree with the person who responded to one of these comments who pointed out that Fascinating Horror, while usually thorough, never explained why the tanks had been stored in the Coliseum to begin with. What was the reason for those tanks being there?
Half of me is relieved that these mistakes lead to better regulations but the other half is concerned that this guy never runs out of videos
Unfortunately, there are still plenty of disasters both past and present out there.
@@dawnstorm9768 and to come, I don’t think @Fascinating Horror will ever run out of material for these vids!
The hard reality is that there will always be disasters - but fortunately they are MUCH less frequent now. It seems like in earlier times buildings used to catch fire left and right.
And he never will....
Great point.
"The orchestra that had provided music for the evening performances continued to play until the arena was almost empty of spectators"
That bit gave me some Titanic vibes
I feel like it’s an unwritten code among musicians that even in a disaster they shall keep the show going.
Gentlemen? It's been a privilege. ⛴️
i also thought about the musicians on the Titanic when i heard about the orchestra continuing to play until the audience left the vuilding
It reminds me of soldiers in trenches under fire. Some of them will revert to basic repeatable actions until someone redirects them. Such as gun cleaning, reloading, moving supplies, ect.
The musicians playing might just be them reverting to their basic training to cope with the situation.
@@jeanglendinning1860 I do remember one circus disaster on this channel where the circus band switched to playing "The Stars and Stripes Forever", which in that context was a covert signal of an emergency to the rest of the circus's own stagehands while it also helped to keep the evacuating audience members calm. Apparently the use of that particular march for that purpose is a very common practice even now, which is interesting for a tune that most people remember as "that Sousa march with the piccolo solo that you often hear on the 4th of July".
my grandfather was a nurse in his twenties at the time, and he was there that night. from my understanding, he helped pull survivors out of the wreckage and used his medical knowledge to help with first aid where he could. he doesn't like to talk about what he saw, and i won't pry, but he never went back to the fairgrounds after he left in the early hours of the next morning. he avoided the area for six decades, up until last year. my high school graduation ceremony took place in the coliseum, and he made the decision to stop running from the memories so he could attend. he loves me enough to step foot in a place he'd been desperately avoiding for over sixty years, and he relived those memories so that he could celebrate with the rest of our family. my heart aches not only for those who lost their lives in such a horrific fashion, but also for people like my grandfather, who suffered through surviving.
Wow! That’s so nice of your grandpa to go to your graduation there after all he experienced. That’s love 💕
God bless your grandfather! 🙏❤️
I got myself some goosebumps reading that. What a touching story and what a guy your grandfather must be. Not sure if he's still with you, but if he is, I hope he gets as many years as he wanted. If not, my condolences and respects to you and yours, seems like a good guy. What a story ❤
He was not the only person who jumped in to help. Every medically trained person, as well as many others assisted. I was a child when it occurred but we had tickets for a performance in November.
While the disaster was horrible it was uncovered in the investigation that the tanks were extras/spares that had been overlooked and not mainstained.
There were male nurses back then?? Nursing schools in the US didn't start accepting men into their programs until 1982. And that was only after a Supreme Court ruling.
My great grandfather* (see edit) was killed in the explosion. Other family members were also there, but had stepped out of the performance area (I believe to use the restroom or get snacks). You can find his name on the plaque located near the entrance of the coliseum.
I'd like to point out to other commenters here, there was no one mistake made or individual responsible in this incident. The normalization of deviance will consume any corporation, business, or organization. It consumed the fire marshal's office, the Coliseum Corporation, and Discount Gas, and it will continue to be a problem so long as humans are a factor in the operation of infrastructure.
Edit: I've since been informed that it was not my great uncle, but my great grandfather. Unfortunately, I never met him as he passed away far before I was born. My family tends to not talk about it too much, but any time we're at a Fuel game we always stop by the plaque and quietly reflect amidst the chaos of the Coliseum's entrance.
normalization of deviance, well said
My condolences to you
All the names on the plaque are visible at 9:16
What was his name? Sorry for your great uncle's lost.
Humans, the cause of and the solution to all of our problems.
Cheers
It’s almost always negligence or laziness or a combination of the two in these videos. And in most cases, no one responsible for the disaster ends up facing adequate consequences for their failings.
"Life"
It's cruel and unfeeling.
Or to try to save a buck.
It's always about greed. Nothing has changed today.
@@ReglazeRX difference between the uncaring nature of the natural world and the incompetence of humans in the name of money
This was also in the early 60's. Rich wh!te men could do no wrong..
My mom was 9 when this happened and they lived about a mile north of the coliseum. My grandparents wanted to take her to the show but she wanted to go trick or treating instead.
Unfortunately this event wasn’t the only tragedy to take place at the these fairgrounds. A temporary stage collapsed into a crowd in 2011, killing 7 and injuring almost 60 more. It happened directly across the street from the coliseum.
I've lived in Indiana my whole life and have NEVER heard about this incident. I remember the 2011 incident well though... 😢 I was in school when I heard about it. Made me not want to attend any big events like that again. However, I do go to my town's local festivals every year. They're pretty small, but they draw a big crowd.
I was born and raised in Indy and I remember the 2011 stage collapse. That was so insane and hard to watch. 😢
The grandstand can be seen on the right side of the aerial shot. It was across from there where the stage blew apart. I grew up in Indiana and only learned of the Holiday on Ice disaster a few years ago. As part of a HS marching band competition we marched before that grandstand on the dirt track. When we were setting up, we could hear Jefferson Starship sound checking inside the Coliseum which I think was called the Pepsi Coliseum. My mom took us to see Liza Minnelli there @1973 too.
That was one of my first major memories growing up. It was so strange hearing about something that took so many lives in such a tragic way in the state I live in.
She. Your mom is a she.
My grandfather owned a candy shop in downtown Indianapolis at the time. He rented a booth at the fairgrounds at the time during events selling caramel apples. The week before, someone stole his car, and he had to get a ride for him and his product. The bus lines didn't run real late that far out, so he had to leave early leaving trays etc. To be picked up in the morning. You can see remnants of his candy booth in the picture of the tanks. This story always wows me.
That car thief may have just saved his life
Yikes, Gpa was having a bad week. Or a good week, if you count he wasn't there for the explosion.
He definitely saw the theft as a blessing. He would have never survived. There is an infamous picture (it wasn't used here) and you can see the destroyed caramel apples sign. No way He would have survived.
Can I just say I love that you used Norm McDonald’s Funny Burt R. Jeopardy character.. it’s one of the best SNL skits 😊
@@charisselinnell-morton4137 it's amazing how many people don't catch the reference. Lol
My grandma & grandpa had tickets for this show, and had plans to take my Mom & Aunt to the show. Their tickets were right in the middle of the blast. At the last minute, a Major General showed up at the air base and with my grandpa being a commanding officer, he had to stay late to greet him. Grandpa told me that he was grumpy and cussing the whole time because he had to cancel their trip to Indy. The next day when he saw the news, he bought the MG a bottle of Jim Beam whiskey and thanked him. Funny how life works out.
Wow. Just think there was probably somebody thrilled that there were some empty seats in front of them that gave them some extra leg room. "Must be my lucky day," 😢
I grew up in Indiana and remember this awful event. My brother in law’s father was an orthopedic surgeon. When he got word of the explosion, he asked the neighbor lady to watch his children and left for the hospital. He was gone for 3 days and nights. There were so many badly injured. He worked non stop. God bless him.
I’m somewhat surprised that a company with a name like “discount gas” didn’t sound sketchy to other people (as if they took cost cutting measures).
I’m also surprised by the crowd behavior right after the explosion, seems to be more rare in events like this
The primary factor in determining the actions of a crowd in a situation like this, especially after the implementation of mandatory school fire drills, is the availability of exits. As long as the crowd is able to keep moving at a reasonable pace, people will just keep filing out.
That's what I was thinking! Not sure I would trust a name like "Discount Gas"...
It DOES sound sketchy until you remember Discount Tire has been around for decades
There’s a company in my area called something like Discount Casket and Funerary.
Every time I pass it, the name makes me laugh a little. It’s just _so_ direct and to the point in a way that isn’t common for business names.
@@Annie_Annie__ This is one area where I hope my family will cut corners. I’ll be dead ffs. Save that money for yourselves and keep my ashes in a Chock Full O’ Nuts Can!
"no one was directly.. blah blah"
THEY HAD NO PERMIT TO STORE THAT GAS THERE..
SOMEONE had to know that needed a permit and chose to ignore it..
it is amazing how often a judge or court is "kind" to liable companies but throw the book at a single individual for the exact same actions..
"ignorance of the law is no excuse"
Maybe it was decided that the fine money and court costs would be better spent on compensating the victims.
A piece of government red tape existing in a filing cabinet wouldn't make it not explode. The problem was storing the gas indoors and not maintaining the canisters.
That's quite an assumption. Did you not listen to what they said? The gas company didn't inform them of the proper use and storage of the tanks (which was not likely nearly as regulated as today), and likely didn't know where they were being stored, and the people who stored them likely did not understand the dangers of having them otherwise stored properly and inspected where they were stored.
Why do you assume that anyone knew they needed that permit? It seems reasonable to me that someone was told to move the gas canisters because the space they were occupying was needed for something else, and then the only space that wasn't already occupied was in that room, and that person didn't know enough to doubt putting them in there.
@@TheEarthCreature Did you do any research outside this video? The fire department was indicted in this case as well. They knew about the tanks and had inspected the venue many times before. In the end it was just easier to sue a company with insurance than it is to try to sue a negligent government.
The minute you mentioned LPG I screamed in surprise. What the hell were they doing keeping LPG inside a building. LPG is known for its explosive properties,
It was probably fuel for the Zamboni, but they never should have stored it indoors in an unventilated room.
How horrible! Had never heard of this. Seems like it was quickly forgotten until 2002. And "Discount " is not a word you want to associate with volatile gasses.
It is truly sad that it took until 2002 for those who lost their lives to be memorised by the hanging of that plaque listing the names of the victims. That should have been done within the first few years after the disaster.
Lord - what a tragedy! I lived in Indiana and spent lots of time in Indianapolis - and never, ever heard anyone mention this disaster. Horrible.
Don't feel bad I live in Indianapolis, have my entire life and never heard of it
"Was designed to create jobs, bolster infrastructure.." and create very poor quality structures that constantly fail within 60-70% of their estimated lifespan instead of 120-200%.
Welcome to AmericaWorks-type programs =p
You notice none of the owners got charged.. just the staff and the fire department.
Same here, born and raised here and NEVER heard of this. Interesting for sure.
Another crazy story that happened in Indy years back was the guy who flew the plan into the Ramada Inn. Google it. Crazy photos.
So scary that one or two people's choices can end many many people lives.
Born in Indiana and had to find out about this tragedy from a documentarian. Unbelievable.
Every memory book the indianapolis star puts out has this story in it.
a British one at that. skynews Australia seems to be one of the truthful news outlets. smfh
@@billmadison2032 It's pretty stupid to do the 'shaking my head' thing about this. It's not the amazing point you wish it were, and btw Australia isn't 'British' but people like you never understand simple things like that
@@jamescarter3196 you need to learn punctuation I made a comment about this video and then made a comparison of the problem of fake news, hence Sky News Australia. You need to chill out and not be so quick to shit on people
Why are you blaming your lack of curiosity on anybody but yourself?
I'm from Indiana and was not even aware of this incident happening. Thank you for covering this.
I lived in Indiana my whole life. And I had never heard of this incident before.
Took almost 40 years to unveil a memorial plaque to the victims?? Wow what a disgrace.
You think thats a disgrace wait til you hear about the town that refused to let surviving family of plane crash victims put up a memorial of any kind.
@@bradsanders407 Disgusting.
@@bradsanders407 Elaborate, please. Memorial, how dare you.
That’s Indiana for you.
@@bradsanders407 What plane crash are you talking about?
What may seem like a small human error leads to a massive human tragedy as is so often the case
and the speed was impressive
Another excellent video. You have set the bar by which other history/disaster channels are measured.
It frustrates me how the people in charge of these companies with wealth and power almost always seem to avoid getting consequences for their negligent actions when stuff like this goes so horribly wrong.
The usual round of trials go: Criminal trial, I plead innocent, acquitted. Civil trial, yeah I did it, pay out a fine.
The owners didn't even face one charge.
Also the plaque should read: here's all the people who died due to negligence - whose families didn't even receive 10% of the amount they should have.
That's what happens when capitalism goes unchecked
What you just described is even worse in Indiana. Companies are never held accountable, especially when the victims are just normal people.
I knew exactly what happened when I saw the title of the vid. Corp/persons responsible charged, convicted, conviction set aside, some money given to someone as if it would make up for the horror. This is how justice works in the USA. There is only justice for those with the money to buy it.
I emailed you guys about this awhile back. Overjoyed you covered it.
You never disappoint with these stories of Horror, thank you so much for all your hard work!!
Stay safe and remember that you are loved and valued ~😊
Funny how the gas company got charged but not the people who stored the gas negligently.
Agreed. I’m like why are they going after them and not the people directly involved.
Today it's the other way around.
I think they have to be charged separately, so the attorney is going after who has the most money.
It seems to be a common theme in a lot of these. Back in the day. Various people that were responsible getting arrested and charged and then it gets dropped.
They conveniently only go after people with money . Suing individual workers who probably made minimum wage at the time would get the lawyers zero in the amount of compensation. By suing companies and cities themselves the insurance companies will pay out a lot more than some low level convention center employee who probably doesn’t have many assets.
The title cut off for me and I thought it said "The State of Indiana" and I was about to be like "Man, Indiana alone is a horror story in itself, huh?"
Either case is true.
@@julisa3100 just have an entire video dedicated to the town of Gary 💀💀
Live in Southwestern Indiana and I honestly can say I'd never want to live anywhere else. Now up north? Nah. I'm good. 👍😂🤣😭💀
Yes
😂
I lived in northern Indiana in '63, I was a little kid, and my father was a radio announcer. I don't remember hearing about this at all! It just shows how fast and furious news travels in this day and age. Even as a little kid, I knew about the Holocaust, the Titanic, Pearl Harbor - but never heard about this.
Well done, sir! Always appreciate your hard work.
I bet your parents shielded you from hearing about this because it WAS so immediate to you. Those other things were “long ago and far away”. Parents back in the day didn’t let kids hear about bad things. AND it was easy by not turning on the nightly news and just giving the kids the funny pages and keeping the first page away.
@@NancyD2 I was never "protected" from the news. I vividly remember being at the radio station with my dad when the AP teletype would go off, and we'd all run in there to see what the news was. I watched the nightly news EVERY night, with the whole family watching, The Vietnam "televised war", the assassination of JFK, the Beatles, even Johnny Carson. Maybe I heard about this and it wasn't anything life shattering to me, like some of the other stuff. No, I was always exposed to current events. With my father in the media, I was not "protected".
@@Real_g.s. The JFK assassination was 22 days after this. I imagine the media quickly moved to that instead.
@@SalisburySnake Oh wow! Never thought of that. Thanks! Well, and then the Beatles in February on Ed Sullivan. No idea how old you are, but our world revolved around the Beatles at that point.
My EMT course used a bleacher collapse as our "emergency practice" because of this incident. The teacher was obsessed with this explosion.
My Mom grew up in a German-immigrant farming community on the near southside of Indy, and was in her early 20s when this happened. She talked about it from time to time, and always mentioned how everyone knew someone who had been injured or killed at the Coliseum explosion. In her case, it was a teenage child of one of the other families in the community.
I was always somewhat mystified that there wasn't a memorial (until the plaque mentioned), but the Coliseum has always been a fairly busy place, including constant use during the State Fair each year. I can imagine no one wanted the reminder.
Sounds like she was from the Fountain Square area or just a little north of there. When I-70 was constructed, it destroyed &/or cut off several historic ethnic neighborhoods.
@@BooBooKittyFuzzyBritches Bluff Road & Epler.
Back in the day, Bluff Rd was nothing but German immigrant farming families from the same general northwestern area of (at that time) West Germany. My Grandparents' farm backed up to Adrian Orchards.
FWIW, my Grandma met a good-looking young German immigrant in the fall of 1959 and decided that one of her daughters was going to marry him. So yeah, I spent many a childhood summer weekend stuffed into a dirndl dress and dragged along to picnics at the German -American Klub.
I kinda miss those days, honestly. Still visit the GAK on occasion.
The popularity of memorials depends on the culture at the time. It seems like for non-war related memorials, these were less common or popular in the past than they are now.
I am from Indiana and my mom was 8 when this happened. She still talks about it today. Thank you for covering this!!
FWIW, Howard Caldwell was a mainstay on WRTV Channel 6 for decades out of Indianapolis.
He was a real professional, an old school journalist.
Decades after his retirement and later death in 2017, there are lots of us Hoosiers who still miss him.
I’m from Indy and have been to the coliseum numerous times, I had never heard of this. Absolutely heartbreaking.
Sadly it always seems to take a major tragedy to change safety regulations so it doesn’t happen again.
All safety regulations are written in blood.
@@katiekane5247 Yes, and quite often the disaster is repeated anyway
That’s why I’m hyper fixated on these tragedies, not for the lives lost or any kind of twisted fascination but for the changes that come about in policy. Like the sinking of the titanic and how it indirectly lead to the Eastland disaster as well, due to changes in life boats. (Though in the end that was mostly greed in the owners end)
The USCSB channel here on the toob is full of recreations of industrial and commercial accidents like this, and it's always either laziness or cheapness. Some plant manager doesn't want to spend .30 per employee on a safety measure and then three weeks later there's an explosion that levels half the facility, kills five workers, leaks toxic material into the community, and costs millions in cleanup and fines.
You sadly failed to understand. It was never the safety regulations. It was the ENFORCEMENT of the safety regulations that failed. You can have all the regulations known to man and they would do you not an iota of good if they were never enforced. This video's conclusion that it is somehow safer when no one was ever held accountable is a bit naïve.
It is amazing how many people are still blaming the gas company and Fairground management. Some tragedies are caused not by corporate greed, but by many people making individually inconsequential mistakes that form a very unlikely series of events that snowballs into catastrophe. This is one of those times. The only person whose individual actions substantively caused this explosion are those of the employee who opened the door and didn't immediately close it again, but we can accept that this person didn't understand the mechanics of a gas explosion.
Why can't people also accept that the lack of a permit does not equal the knowledge that a permit is required? Why can they not accept that a business (and thereby it's owner) can be responsible for the actions of their employees that contribute to a tragedy without being personally criminally liable? There is no straight line from what the employees at the fairgrounds chose to do with the canisters back to the owner of the gas company. Yes, if any individual along the chain of events had been more knowledgeable, this would not have happened, but you tell me, which person was it, or are they all responsible for the cumulative effects of everyone's actions and not just their own? If the juries back then with far more evidence than we have here couldn't figure it out, who are we to pass judgement?
Do not think that I'm defending corporate greed; it is usually responsible. But this time, there just isn't sufficient evidence that the gas company did anything but deliver the canisters, look at where they were asked to place them, and decide that that was a good spot. As the delivery driver was not charged, I think we are safe in believing that he didn't deliver them to the unventilated room under the stands. Were there things the gas company could have said or done that would have prevented this tragedy? Obviously yes, but does that require them to also make the intuitive leap that someone at the fairgrounds would do something, which was to them, inconceivably stupid? Also yes, and that isn't a fair standard. That's like expecting some other parent to be responsible for your child petting a lion.
The gas company I'd agree isnt liable. Its not their job nor should it be to police where the canisters go . The fairgrounds however absolutely are responsible. You cannot operate a big business like a fairgrounds and aaalll the permits it takes (occupancy, fire, livestock, food, human waste, building etc) and not have a reasonable inclination to suspect this might be a thing you should ask about. I'm not in construction but I know I probably need permits to build a shed, outhouse, deck , demolish a structure or to rewire my house. Maybe I dont need them all but I know its on me to find out not do as I please and be immune from the ramifications of my deliberate ignorance. The management or who ever was in charge really never thought about empty canisters or storage huh? Management that worries about the time, number and duration of the shits of each and every employee just couldn't think maybe find out about that? Companies that make it their job to know exactly how many cups are at refreshment stand and down to the ticket how many and where every roll is just lost track of the canisters? No they didn't, they could have and choose not to because they didn't want to. Policing their trash doesn't generate profit so who cares. I bet they knew exactly which dumpster was full, which needed replaced and where tho I go along with the dumpsters experiencing illegal dumping by the public so they can lock those....but canisters of explosive fuel? Nah, tooo hard.
Cannot believe people buy any businesses bullshit. They are all liars, its what they do...lie and charm to convince you to do as they wish.
Well said. A hundred different actions by a hundred different people, acting not necessarily out of evil but rather ignorance, came together in a tragic way. People today have watched too many Marvel movies, and believe everything that happens is good vs evil.
People are dumb. Tragedies happen.
People want to find someone to blame bc they are afraid. They don't want to accept that sometimes bad things just happen. We have become a society of finger-pointers.
"Only one person was found guilty, and this was later overturned." TO THE SURPRISE OF ABSOLUTELY NOBODY. At least people were compensated. I suppose the guilty people would have been punished by the weight of their own consciense.
Yeah, like Norfolk Southern stock holders & management are crippled by the magnitude of the East Palestine wreck? Like the Sacklers are crushed by the opiate deaths they caused?
Sociopaths have no conscience!
Guilt only works if they have a conscience. 😢
@@joanhoffman3702 Ain't that the truth... :(
That's cause when you sue the company, they will tend to settle out of court. When you try to sue the CEO of the company they won't face charges. the CEO doesn't know that Moron Morris had allowed people to place explosive gas, he brought, under seats in a venue. The owner of the building didn't know that Lazy Lou put the tanks under seats so he could go on his 5th smoke break of that hour.
Who needs a scare at Halloween when this happens truly horrendous and worse than any horror movie I'm sure
I live about 20 minutes away from the fairgrounds but have never heard about this! Thank you for educating me
How in the hell was I born and raised in Indianapolis and I've never heard of this?! 🤷♀️
It was a different era where tragedies like this weren’t dwelled on for too long. Perhaps it was a mindset leftover from a generation that lived through WWII, where people were used to horrors and moved on with life. I also suspect that the assassination of President Kennedy less than a month later shifted attention away from this tragedy.
Not sure. Every memory book the Indianapolis star has put out has this story in it.
Born and raised as well and it's my first time hearing of this too.
Same! I grew up here and go to the state fair every year too! My friend even works for Indiana Farmers. Guess I don’t know as much about my city as I thought I did.
Maybe "putting the story away" helps keep the pain away.
Maybe I see things differently, but all these anniversaries of tragedies seems a bit much.
Nobody in my family has been involved in a tragedy so I can't say what I'd do, but I think if they had, I'd grieve privately.
Lived my entire life in Indianapolis but have never heard of this event. It's wild that we have had such a devastating disaster that I have never heard of. The only Indiana State Fairgrounds disaster I knew of before this was the 2011 stage collapse, which killed seven. I had no idea that the fairgrounds had previously had an even more devastating event earlier in its history.
I've Lived jus South of indy my whole life but never have heard of this. Thanks Broseph! Do more from Indiana pls! I love your videos
Cannot tell you how surreal it is to see a place I pass often on this channel.
Thank you for doing this one! So many people who live here don't know about this tragedy. My uncle was at a bar nearby when the explosion happened and he said he ran over to help pull bodies onto the ice. If you go there now, the section of seats that exploded is a special section dedicated to those who died. You can see it in the top of the frame at 7:33.
I was 9 yrs old at the time, living at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
Our aunts and uncles were supposed to be in attendance that night, but at the last minute they didn't go. Thank God!
Nice job ! Never knew about the explosion 💥, I love to learn even if I’m getting on with my age & don’t work any more !! I was told as a young man that if you stop learning than there’s nothing to live for !!!
There is something immensely satisfying about how the skating footage lines up with the music. Lovely.
We live in a world where things from yesteryear are scrubbed hidden or removed due to modern sensibilities denying us the ability to know how we got here and mistakes that were made and learn from them. Your channel does a wonderful job of recording these tragedy’s and the effect they have had and most importantly the lessons learned from such events. Thank you
I can't believe I've never heard of this disaster! My goodness! Thank you for such another well-done video. So fair and so respectful.
The crane mentioned in this video was provided by Dotlich crane. This business has been run by my family for generations, and is still operating in Indianapolis.
Kinda a strange way to shout out the family business but ayye 😂
I grew up a few miles from this arena, In the '70s one of my scout leaders told us the story about being there with his family the night of the explosion. They all survived, fortunately, but they'd never forget that night.
Another tuesday,
Another disaster i didn't know before
Thank you
I have been to several events at the Coliseum over the years. This explosion happened 7 years before I was born, but I had always heard about it. Thank you for covering this tragedy. I learned a lot of things about it that I hadn't previously known.
I grew up 10 minutes from the fairgrounds, even had my high school graduation ceremony there, and I had no idea about any of this!
Fantastic job! My grandparents had tickets to this show but my grandfather had to work late that night. One of their friends who they were supposed to go with said that they could never go back to the Coliseum again after everything they saw. If they had gone I probably wouldn't be here today. Also everyone at the Indiana State archives is probably going to be watching this now lol I used to work there for about 11-12 years and told them about this video!
We was told & taught about THIS HORRIBLE DISASTER in Indiana History Class. (Small school 40 miles from Indianapolis). I CANNOT BELIEVE HOW MANY HOOSIERS HAVE NO IDEA THIS HAPPENED.. My Father talked about this. I am 61 years old & think about this every year we volunteer at the Pioneer Village at the Indiana State Fair.
I agree, this is a go to for the star, as well as channel 13 when looking back at things, but it seems people phase out when hearing the words "fair grounds"
I grew up in Indianapolis from '73 onward and seriously had NEVER heard of this event. . . And my family has lived in Indy since the 30's.
I'm a civil engineer, and 1 of my latest projects is updating various oil spill plans, stormwater management, haz mat, etc. I can definitely see how this sort of mistake could happen. The number of times I've had to call this company and ask "ok, are you SURE that's all the oil? what do you MEAN there's another 100-1000 gal tank just chillin!? where is it and what's in it???"
Legally, these plans, inspections, and inventories MUST be updated every time there's a change (and certified by a professional engineer), but oftentimes they just...don't. People copy out of date info from previous versions, temporary changes or moves can become permanent, facility owners/managers don't want to go through the hassle of getting their plans re-certified by a professional engineer (as they legally must), etc.
Luckily, my engineering firm is very responsible and ensures we do good work, but it's easy to imagine something slipping through the cracks, especially since we can't always physically inspect facilities ourselves, and rely on the info we're getting to be accurate. Also, we can TELL a company they Have To Follow The Rules, Actually, but once we write up the management/emergency plans, or design the structure, or give our Official Engineering Advice(tm), we can't actively enforce or monitor what actually goes on. (We do have a legal and ethical duty to report violations and failures if we can't remedy them, and act as "whistle blowers" if need be, but we're not government inspectors, and our access is limited)
This channel has been a huge inspiration for me for years, before I even graduated college. It gives a good motivation to make sure my work and clients DONT end up on this channel. It's a good reminder that even the boring paperwork and routine work is important and can have major consequences
Indiana native, never heard of this. Thanks! I just can't believe those ridiculous ice skating shows have been around so long. Now I am just waiting to see the disaster unfold that ends with the cause being underlying structural issues resulting from an explosion in 1963...
When they did the major rehab a few years back they focused on they area so that wouldn't be an issue
@@hoopty388 just noticed...rip, norm, what a legend
Hey, nice! I had suggested this. Good to see my oft-forgotten home state get the spotlight--even if it is for something like this. Everybody around here knows about the State Fairgrounds, but not many remember this tragedy. For all the devastation, the fairgrounds is still an active, beloved venue in the city. I've been there for many concerts and hockey games, and I've always had a great time.
Although 81 casualties are 81 too many, the structural quality of the building probably saved many more.
Looks like just the gas-filled section of the stand was compromised and not much else, and if only by flying chunks of concrete.
Just seven weeks to repair and reopen is pretty amazing and a testament to the building.
Maybe a word also for the Indiana State Fair Stage collapse from a decade ago.... equally as terrifying.
I think he did a video on that
The people in the stands were just as to blame as anyone for those deaths.
I’ve live pretty close to this place my whole life and I never knew about this, I remember the stage collapsing in 2011. That was rough.
I cant believe I've never learned about this. I think everyone was in such a state of shock, panic stayed at a minimum. This entire disaster was shockingly avoidable. Thanku for another excellent video.
We are watching this together right now and that’s pretty cool
I honestly cannot tell you how many times I've watched videos on this channel and literally said out loud, "How in the hell have I never heard about this before?"
Holiday on Ice sounds like it would have been so much fun to see.
It was. Apparently, they continued it at Market Square Arena, bc I remembered going several times as a kid in the 80's.😊
I went in the 70s, and it was! Cheesy goodness.
I went to holiday on ice and the ice capades several times late 60’s early 70’s. Lots of fun
May I recommend you cover the 1949 Effingham, IL USA, Hospital Fire. I worked in the medical community there for years and thought of this tragedy regularly. I would often run into some of the people involved with the event in some way. The entire story has not been told in a well prepared video to my knowledge. I believe it still stands as the largest hospital fire in the USA but I may be wrong.
The sad part is there’s more than one disaster that’s happened at the Indiana state fair that you can document
Worked at the coliseum for a number of years. I actually lived in 1 of the 8 total apartments that were in the building. Heard noises and saw things that didn’t make sense. Always felt creepy in the back hallway and tunnel where the explosion happened.
Side note: they used the ice as a temporary morgue that night. A co-worker of mine was helping out during the tragedy and has always said the scene was way worse than ever shown or explained.
These mini documentaries are so well put together, narrated, and edited, that with deep respect to the subject matter, they are so informative and enjoyable. I wonder if teachers use them as tools for imparting history lessons to students. I personally learn a lot from watching these and thank the creators for sharing them.
Thank you for always bringing light to the least unheard off tragedies that we in the modern age would not know. Great content as always. 🩵
I played youth hockey in the Colosseum in 65 and 66. I remember someone telling me that story, and it terrified me every time I went in the building.
Congratulations on growing your channel to well over 1M subscribers! It's cool to see all your hard work making these videos pay off 🙌🙂
Years before TH-cam, I found out about this smaller disaster and wanted to do a documentary about it. It's so obscure, yet terrifying and sad. I'm glad someone is covering this, because I was too lazy to put it together and missed the opportunity. Thanks for making this. It's worth memorializing!
Finally talking about one of the great disasters in my state’s history. Thanks for bringing attention to it! If you want some more Indiana content, talk about the 2011 state fair stage collapse or the 1987 Ramada Corsair crash
You should look into the Indiana State Fairgrounds stage collapse on August 13, 2011, if you haven't already covered it. Seven killed and almost 60 other injured at an outdoor concert in some pretty bad weather. My partner was at the fairgrounds, but not the concert; his group left prior to the incident, because of the weather.
Another couple of my friends were driving on the highway, not too far from the fairgrounds, at the time. They both specifically remember feeling like the Jeep they were in was going to be blown over.
Suggested video. Do one on the pekin, IL corn starch explosion of 1924. No one has heard of it, which is sad.
Another interesting video. Thanks!
Speaking of the Indian State Fair, I forget, have you done one about the 2011 Indiana State Fair stage collapse?
I'm an Indy native and have been to the Fairgrounds many times, but I'm sad to say that I never knew about this tragedy until today. I'll have to find the plaque when I'm there next time and pay my respects.
Yeah, I'm also from Indy too. And had been to the fairground a few times myself. But I was aware of this incident.
this isn't the first time I've heard of musicians continuing to play throughout the chaos.... it's kind of remarkable.
I'm a musician. Would I continue? I'm not sure.
I love that you put amazing work into your documentaries that I never would have heard about. Keep it up! Much love from Richmond, VA, USA.
My grandparents and dad remember this well. I’ve seen the plaque, though I didn’t find out about this disaster until about a year ago. The local hockey team plays there, and there is always a lot going on in that building for the State Fair. It’s a little unsettling to think about the scale of the disaster that happened there.
Wow. I am 35 years old, born and raised in Indianapolis, have been in the building multiple times, and I never knew about the explosion.
Oh yeah lets get some of them DISCOUNT GAS CORPORATION canisters.
Love the work!
There was another disaster about 350 ft from there circa 2010-ish.
This real life Halloween story is scarier than any fictitious one I've heard.
Then fortunately for you, you haven't seen or heard many Halloween stories of tragedy. No disrespect implied. I've been a student of true crime for 22 years now. Needless to say, I've seen some pretty horrifying stuff.
Lucky you?
right? its like biblical levels of sudden destruction and devestation. what a nightmare
@@simulantmind2204 I know there are many real life Halloween stories worse than this one but saying it's the "3rd or 10th or 50th worst" just doesn't sound right.
@@moxiemaxie3543 It's a way of saying it's a horrific event. Not complicated.
My mom was about to turn 8 at the time. She had a ticket to go with her mom, but she got sick and stayed home. They gave the tickets to neighbor boys. They survived unharmed, as far as I know. If someone mentions the Fairgrounds Coliseum explosion on Indianapolis nostalgia Facebook groups, the comments are full of fascinating memories and family stories.
I went to the Coliseum countless times while growing up in the 90s and 00s. Ice skating, state fairs, hockey games, exhibitions, circuses, etc. Every time, I glanced at the commemorative plaque at the entrance. The fact that stuck out for me was how the ice rink became... a morgue. Very spooky.
On a more cheerful note, the Beatles played there less than a year later.
I've always been grateful my mom got sick that night.
PS - I now work in the tallest building in the city. As I type this comment, I keep glancing out the window at the Coliseum, 4 or 5 miles to the north and easily visible.
PPS - Both of my parents witnessed the other Indiana State Fairgrounds disaster, the 2011 fatal stage collapse. They were walking in the parking lot behind it, so they were not injured. They were definitely shaken up by the scene afterwards, though.
My grandfather was the lieutenant governor of the state of Indiana at this time. It is a family legend how sick he was during this time. Literally physically ill.
The amount of times one of these mini docs is centered around fun and holiday makes me never want to be in a fun crowd again😅
Always look forward to FH on a Tuesday morning
Given the usual lapses in judgment and the usual escaping of punishment by those responsible, the only surprising here unfortunately is that people *didn't* stampede when it would have been semi-justified for once (even if it would have of course worsened things even more). Huh.
Teah, I was like "Oh no" when people started mass evacuating. But apprently they didn't lock exits or even pile random stuff in front of them! What a nice surprise.
I've heard that since a quite a few of the attendees were WWII combat veterans and their training and experiences let to them remaining calm in the face of disaster
Discount Gas!?!?!? How strange!
1:44 what a fantastic photograph!!!
This is a horrible situation, but I’m still glad that people kept calm while evacuating, this could have become another horrible crush story.
With today's every man for himself attitude it would have been, people were more rational in those days.
Great work FH, condolences to the families of the victims.
My grandmother was ten when this horrible tragedy happened it is truly horrible what happened she knew a girl whose mother was there when the explosion happened. I hope to god nothing like this happens again in Indiana or any other state or country
This is one of the best channels the interweb has to offer.
You reminded me of the Titanic, when you said "the band continued to play til the arena was almost empty." Surely there's a place in heaven for musicians who play in the face of disaster.
Two scary words; discount gas😐
Of course, the stage collapse in 2011 was horrifying, but I never even heard of this 1963 event, until today. I know that it took a decade until the sense of slight unease when I would go to the State Fair would dissipate. I guess it took a global pandemic to take my mind off of what happened in 2011, so I really can't imagine the severity or consequences of what happened in 1963. Wow. Tomorrow isn't promised, guys. Make what you will of that.
This channel is the best possible argument against free market deregulation
I agree with the person who responded to one of these comments who pointed out that Fascinating Horror, while usually thorough, never explained why the tanks had been stored in the Coliseum to begin with. What was the reason for those tanks being there?
Seeing so many pairs of last names in the memorial plaque was heartbreaking...
'Lessons learned.' How many times have we heard that said??!!