<Tr> <Th> Cause </Th> <Td> Arson </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Deaths </Th> <Td> 95 </Td> </Tr> <P> On December 1, 1958, a fire broke out at Our Lady of the Angels School in Chicago, Illinois, shortly before classes were to be dismissed for the day . The fire originated in the basement of the school near the foot of a stairway . The elementary school was operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago and had an enrollment of approximately 1600 students . A total of 92 pupils and 3 nuns ultimately died when smoke, heat, fire, and toxic gasses cut off their normal means of escape through corridors and stairways . Many more were injured when they jumped from second - floor windows which, because the building had a raised basement, were nearly as high as a third floor would be on level ground (c. 25 ft .). </P> <P> The disaster was the lead headline story in American, Canadian, and European newspapers . Pope John XXIII sent his condolences from the Vatican in Rome . The severity of the fire shocked the nation and surprised educational administrators of both public and private schools . The disaster led to major improvements in standards for school design and fire safety codes . </P>

When was the last time someone died in a school fire