The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire [1911]

The police officer looks so calm or totally impervious to the dead bodies below him.

Probably not. I actually read about this in a history class in college. He’s probably looking up at the building where those women jumped from to avoid the flames.

The building is still there and is used/owned by New York University administration. There is a plaque on the building commemorating the event and flowers are placed there on the anniversary of the fire.

Zombie. I don’t know if I would agree. We don’t know what is going through their minds.

We might call the shop owner callous, uncaring or whatever but the fire outraged the society at the time, it was not a ho-hum-just-some-immigrants blase sort of thing. It impacted them very strongly.

My grandmother was born during this fire (seriously). The doctor who delivered her had to get there by going from rooftop to rooftop.

Can you see paramedics doing that in this day and age?

Zombie and Allison - I suspect the police officer might be expecting other poor unfortunates to join them.

It was a horrible tragedy that has yet to be fully learned from.

It just looks like they are in complete shock of what happened. I’ve read about this famous disaster and those girls there had jumped out of the burning building.

No doubt the sweet shop owner became the “Propriertor of the month” with acclaim.