The issue of fire in tunnels and subway stations is not a new problem.  There have been several underground fires in the past decades all over the world.  These historical events illustrate the prevalence of the issue, and the importance of an effective emergency ventilation system.  Some of the past tunnel / subway fires include: 2003 February Taegu, South Korea Train fire (arson), Chungang-ro Subway Station (>100 killed, >100 injured) Korea Times 2001 October Switzerland Vehicle fire, Gotthard Alpine Tunnel (11 killed) 2001 July Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A. Train fire, Howard Street Train Tunnel 2000 November Kitzsteinhorn, Austria Cable car catches fire in tunnel (155 killed) 1999 March France / Italy Truck fire, Mont Blanc Tunnel (39 killed) 1995 October Baku Metro, Aserbadjan Electrical fault, between Uldus and Narimanov (40 killed due to smoke) 1995 July Toronto, Canada Fire, Sheppard Avenue Subway Station 1990 December New York, NY, U.S.A. Electrical fire, tunnel near Clark St., Brooklyn (2 killed) 1987 November London, U.K. Escalator fire, King’s Cross Subway Station (30 killed, including 1 firefighter) 1982 November Afghanistan Tanker explosion, Salang Tunnel (>150 killed) 1979 January San Fransisco, CA, U.S.A. Electrical fire, BART Metro (1 killed, 58 injured) 1972 November Japan Fire, Hokuriku Tunnel (30 killed, many injured) 1971 February Jugoslavia Fire, Vranduk Tunnel (34 killed) 1970 August New York, NY, U.S.A. Tunnel fire near Bowling Green (1 killed, 50 injured)