Other facts related to the OLA fire and school fires in general
The American Wilbert Vault Corp. donated Monarch Whi-Tex burial vaults for more than half of the victims, who were interred in a mass burial at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois.
The three nuns who perished, Srs. Canice, Champagne and Lyng were interred at Mount Carmel Cemetery, Hillside, Illinois on December 4, 1958. Interestingly, their grave stones are engraved with the year each entered the BVM community, rather than the year of their birth.
More than 200 firefighters responded to the Our Lady of the Angels fire. Twenty-two engine companies, seven ladder companies, and ten squad companies responded to the fire.
The Chicago Fire Department's record for the number of people rescued in any single fire was set at Our Lady of the Angels. Officially, firemen rescued 160 children and staff from the school, but the actual number was probably even higher.
The OLA fire was one of the first fires fought using the "Quinn Snorkel," which was the brainchild of Chicago Fire Commissioner Robert J. Quinn in 1958. The so-called snorkel was a hinged boom ("cherry picker" or "giraffe") mounted on a GMC truck chassis, with a nozzle mounted on the basket connected to a hoseline running up the boom. Commissioner Quinn had seen hinged booms in use for tree-trimming and realized it could be a powerful fire-fighting tool. The Chicago Fire Department took delivery of it's first "Quinn Snorkel", with a 50' boom, in September 1958. It's first official use in service came in October that year, but perhaps it's biggest test was it's use in fighting the OLA fire on December 1, when it became clear what a powerful firefighting tool Quinn had come up with. It's maneuverability, flexibility and speed was unmatched by any other piece of firefighting equipment.
Victor Jocobellis died on December 5, 1958 from injuries sustained jumping from room 210, not from burn injuries.
Kurt Schutt, an 8-year-old fourth grader in room 210, died from burn injuries on December 8, 1958. Kurt was burned over 80% of his body.
Susan Smaldone, a 9-year-old fourth grader in room 210 died from burn injuries on December 22, 1958. Susan was burned over 85% of her body.
Valerie Ann Thoma, a 14-year-old eighth grader in room 209, died of burn injuries on March 10, 1959. Valerie not only suffered burns but sustained a severe head injury when she jumped from a window of room 209.
William Edington, Jr., a 13-year-old eighth grader in room 211 died of burn injuries on August 9, 1959. William was burned over 80% of his body and was the last victim of the Our Lady of the Angels fire to die.
Fires in schools are not uncommon in the United States. According to the National Fire Protection Association, there are an average of 8,200 school fires every year in the United States. And, every year, an average of 190 children are killed or injured in these fires.
Our Lady of the Angels - Haunted? A young woman attending the new school in the years after the fire reported hearing screaming and sensing a presence in the hallway when she was alone there. Later she drew faces of the victims she saw in her dreams. A mother saw her dead son come to console her. A girl was also reportedly consoled by her dead sister. At the Fire Memorial in Queen of Heaven Cemetery where 25 child victims are buried, some people say they can sometimes smell the smoke from the fire. And in the rebuilt school, built on the exact site of the old school, many find they have strong feelings of apprehension. Haunted? Who knows.
