An old man was shuffling down a small Chicago alley. 

Carrying something that looked like a bottle, he made his way to a large but decrepit-looking apartment complex.  From the look of him, one might have guessed that he was a vagrant. This was not the case. 

As he drunkenly ascended the stairs towards the third floor of the building where his apartment was located, he tripped several times. He fumbled with his keys as he attempted to enter his living quarters. He took the cap off of his half-empty bottle of spirits to take a swig. His roommate had obviously been in to do some laundry, as the clothes drier was running. He was too befuddled to notice this. He set his bottle on the shaking appliance and shortly passed out upon the worn-looking couch. 

There was a crack as the glass bottle broke on the floor.

The flammable liquid touched bare wires, there was a spark, and flame spread across the floor.

The resulting fire killed seventeen.