Theater Marquee Sparks Downtown Fire

The AVENAL Theatre fire is sad news, but in another post somewhere, someone comments that it is the neon that is to blame, as though neon were somehow a much greater threat to safety than other electrical devices. Neon does operate at much higher voltage than other devices, and that can generate arcs of greater length that might touch a combustable, but other devices fail and cause fires too if not maintained. Since neon can be lighted for decades without attantion, some assume that it can be ignored except for throwing the switch at night time. The truth is that neon needs periodic maintenance as much as any other service. Not only do neon tubes crack and break, but the transformers do suffer magntostriction stress over time, as well as the usual damage to be expected from weathering. Even transformers potted in tar or plastic can suffer degredation leading to failure and possible short circuiting to nearby grounds. During rain, it is all the more likely that ill-maintained neon will reveal that fault. If that neon or other electrical service in the marquee of the AVENAL is also 66-years old, then it certainly needed inspection and maintenance as much as the theatre! Don’t blame the neon; blame naive or negligent people!