Editing Door (section)

=== Opening direction ===
Whenever a door is opened outward, there is a risk that it could strike another person. In many cases this can be avoided by [[architectural design]] which favors doors which open inward to rooms (from the perspective of a common area such as a corridor, the door opens outward). In cases where this is infeasible, it may be possible to avoid an accident by placing [[vision panel]]s in the door.<ref>Home Safety Guidelines for Architects & Builders, NBS GCR 78-156, BOSTI, December 1978</ref>

Inward-hinged doors can also escalate an accident by preventing people from escaping the building: people inside the building may press against the doors, and thus prevent the doors from opening. Related accidents include:
* [[Grue Church fire]]: Grue, Norway in 1822
* [[Victoria Hall Disaster]]: Sunderland, UK in 1883
* [[Glen Cinema disaster]]: Paisley, UK in 1929
* [[Cocoanut Grove fire]]: Boston, USA in 1942

Today, the exterior doors of most large (especially public) buildings open outward, while interior doors such as doors to individual rooms, offices, suites, etc. open inward, as do many exterior doors of houses, particularly in North America.