From the NY Times:

April 26, 2005

Three Boys Die in Fire Caused by Stove Left on for Passover

By ANDY NEWMAN

A fire caused by stovetop burners left on for Passover killed three boys as it whipped through a Brooklyn apartment before dawn yesterday, a few hours after the family had gone to bed at the end of a night of feasting, singing and celebrating.

Ten other people were injured in the fire, including two sisters who jumped out a second-story window and three firefighters. The boys who died were two brothers, Shyia and Yidal Matyas, 15 and 13, and their 7-year-old nephew, Shlomi Falkowitz.

A fire official said that the Orthodox Jewish custom of leaving a flame burning during Sabbath and holidays has caused 35 kitchen fires at Bedford Gardens, the 600-unit apartment complex in Williamsburg, in the last several months.

Judaic law prohibits any work on days of rest, including lighting or extinguishing a flame, a rule many families deal with by leaving fires burning so they can heat food when it is needed. This year, Passover began at sundown on Saturday, as the weekly Sabbath was ending, so many stoves were left burning for days. The Matyas family told fire marshals that they had at least two burners lighted continuously since Friday, a fire official said.

Will the Lord now be pleased that the flames were left on? Even if human deaths resulted from the strict observation of an irrational and dangerous religious edict?