Sometime after midnight on June 23, 2000, a fire broke out at the historical Palace Hotel Backpackers Hostel in Childers, Queensland. Black smoke billowed from the second story, and flames engulfed the main stairwell and back courtyard, blocking the exits. While most of the first-floor residents managed to escape with only minor injuries; residents on the second floor struggled to get out, hampered by blocked doorways and safety bars on the windows. Some crawled underneath the smoke and down the hallway, banging on doors to rouse as many people as…
