The MGM Grand Hotel and Casino was the largest hotel in the world when it opened in December of 1973. Kirk Kerkorian built the hotel because he had recently purchased the MGM movie studio and wanted to create a building that reflected the studio’s image. The completed hotel had twenty-six stories with 2,084 rooms and covered 2.5 million square feet. Kerkorian decorated his building with elaborate chandeliers and statues of Greek Gods.

On November 21, 1980, the infamous MGM fire took the lives of eighty-five people. An electrical short in the display case on the second floor restaurant, called “The Deli,” caused the fire. While the staff contained the fire on the second floor, many deaths resulted from guests inhaling smoke on the stairwells and upper floors.

Although fire code mandates that buildings install sprinkler systems in all areas, Clark County granted an exemption for “The Deli” because the restaurant originally intended to stay open 24/7 with an employee that monitored the area. However, at the time of the fire the restaurant did not operate 24/7, thus, no employee supervised the area. The resulting investigation found eighty-three building code violations, but the state did not file any criminal charges.

Afterwards, victims and families filed 1,327 lawsuits, resulting in companies involved in the construction and operation of the hotel, including MGM, paying into a $223 million dollar settlement fund. The incident brought national attention to the dangers of smoke inhalation, and motivated improvements to fire safety standards worldwide. Kerkorian rebuilt the hotel, but eventually sold it to Bally’s in 1985. Today the building operates as Bally’s Hotel and Casino.