The Ninth Ward School disaster occurred on November 20, 1851, at Ward School No. 26 on Greenwich Street in New York City.[1] While classes were in session, panic suddenly arose among the teachers and students about a possible fire in the building. A mass of students proceeded to flee down a staircase, causing the bannister to fail and the students to tumble into a large pile—reportedly 10to deep—at the bottom of the staircase. [2] [3] Forty-three students died, mostly due to suffocation. An investigation determined that the students' escape had been slowed by inward-swinging exit doors and that the construction of the staircase bannister was insufficient to support the weight of the students. While a coroner's jury found no fault in the accident, it recommended that all schools be built with fire-protected stairways and outward-opening exit doors.[4]