At sundown 800 long-term prisoners among the 4,950 in Ohio's State Penitentiary at Columbus marched back from supper to their cells in the west block. Guards were methodically locking them in for the night when tiny flames spurted up from nowhere, spread fanwise joined almost instantaneously into a seething mass of fiery destruction. Prisoners locked in their cells yelled for release, rattled their bars, gibbered frightfully. When the guards would not free them, prisoners on the outside seized keys, opened locks, loosed a torrent of fire-crazed men.
Thus began a terrific fire in...
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