Throughout history, it’s often taken a catastrophe, a series of highly publicized problems or a major threat to public health and safety to spur changes by government and industry.

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City in 1911 that killed 145 people led to reforms in factory safety, building codes, employee labor protections and inspections.

Fatal motor vehicle accidents in the early part of the last century led to greater crash test standards, tougher traffic safety laws and the development of safety belts, airbags and antilock brakes.

The high number of fatalities due to the rapid growth of air travel led to improvements in airplane engineering, in-flight data monitoring, air traffic control and pilot training practices.

Where safety is concerned, industry and........

© The Leader Herald