With the use of domestic technologies such as oil and gas lamps, the fires in the nineteenth century were a recurring evil.Consequently, the sum of people who lost their lives , burned in factories and in residences, it was alarming, not counting the figures of those who died from the diseases of the Victorian era.Against all skepticism, inventors of the era began a whole revolution of creative designs to escape a fire...they were not very useful but you would be interested to know them for their rarity.
Creative designs to escape from a fire of the century XIX
A crowd gathered on March 10, 1860, in New York, to admire a slide that was deployed along a building .It was held by ropes in the sides and the top was fixed to a window of the enclosure.No one had seen anything similar before.What was it for? Some spectators, with a little fear for the novelty, dared to slip.The audience that waited on the surface was perplexed, as they managed to descend with the bones in place.
That morning was tested for the first time Once one of the many creative designs to escape a fire that emerged in the Victorian era.
Most of the inventions were not safe, nor were they approved by lawmakers back then.They were portable devices, very impractical, that claimed to save skins in case of accidents like these.One of them was the fire escape helmet, patented by BB Oppenheimer, in 1879.This aid kit included a wax cloth , about five feet in diameter, which was tied to the hull.Lucia as an unsafe parachute.
In addition, it included footwear protectors , with thick elastic bottom pads, to lessen the impact of the fall.Its inventor stated: " a person can safely jump out of the window of a building in flames from any height and land without injuries and without the least damage to the ground ». Did the Victorians dare to check it out? We hope not!
Escape from a fire flying!
And if the helmet to escape a fire seems dangerous to you, Pasquale Nigro proposed a pair of wings to Flying away from a burning building .Convinced of its effectiveness, he explained that «in operation, the wearer hooks the ties with his hands and is prepared to jump.The air trapped under the material of the fabric it works to lift the wearer and break the force of his fall.»
In 1909, Nigro asked for 33 thousand dollars to manufacture his invention, but no one dared to invest in that excessive escape mechanism, perhaps because users preferred those tools that included pulleys, slings, ropes and baskets , for more than e They are complicated to use under pressure.
They also installed metal pipes , vertical, similar to the exhaust chucks currently used in multi-storey buildings.Creative to flee a fire in the nineteenth century were rather desperate attempts to get rid of the flames.There were so many resources that exhausted, that this reaffirms to us how habitual were the domestic accidents of this class .
The boilers with bathrooms or geysers, kitchens, and other appliances, were prone to burst. On the other hand, Victorian women's fashion represented another Danger: Shipowners were made of flammable material.As a result, thousands of women became human torches when placed too close to stoves or fireplaces.Unfortunately, many of them died.
After all, In spite of how chaotic it can be to live in this period of time, with all the technological advances and security measures that have become more effective over the years, it is not all bad, is it?
If you liked the article, you may be interested: 5 great inventions made by women
Images: wellcomeimages, Google Pantents.
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