How Could a Fire in a Nightclub Bring Down the Romanian Government?

As details emerged of what happened on Oct. 30, a collective sense of empathy gave way to popular rage against the system that allowed this to happen.

A Romanian gendarme places candles given by the people who came to pay respect for the victims of the fire at the Colectiv nightclub in Bucharest, Nov. 2, 2015. A fire and stampede at the club during the night to Oct. 31, 2015, left at least 39 people dead and nearly 200 injured. Daniel Mihailescu/AFP/Getty Images

It was a Friday night in Bucharest, and an album by metal band Goodbye to Gravity was being launched at a party in the Colectiv nightclub. Fireworks marked the end of the show. Less than two minutes later, the club was ablaze. Almost 150 people were wounded, many critically—and at least 39 died.

Romania fell into a state of shock. Then, as details emerged of what happened on Oct. 30, a collective sense of empathy gave way to popular rage against the system that allowed this to happen.

A collective sense of empathy gave way to popular rage against the system that allowed this to happen.