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Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
World
Delaney Nolan

How the inventor of the bouncy castle saved lives

[Jawahir Al-Naimi/Al Jazeera]

On November 29, 1972, a fire broke out in the high-rise Rault Center, in downtown New Orleans. As firefighters struggled to reach the blaze and television cameras rolled, five women trapped in a beauty salon on the 15th floor had to make an impossible decision: remain in the burning building, or leap.

One by one, they jumped, aiming for the roof of a neighbouring six-storey building. Four of the women died.

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