All Entries in the "Fire Protection Engineering" Category
NIST World Trade Center Disaster Study
World Trade Center Disaster Study On August 21, 2002, with funding from the U.S. Congress through FEMA, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced its building and fire safety investigation of the World Trade Center (WTC) disaster that occured on September 11, 2001. The NIST WTC Investigation was conducted under the authority of […]
Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster
Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster Summary: On August 21, 2002, NIST announced its building and fire safety investigation of the World Trade Center (WTC) disaster. The WTC Investigation was conducted under the authority of the National Construction Safety Team (NCST) Act, which was signed into law on October 1, 2002. Description: […]
NIST Advanced Fire Service Technologies Program
Summary: This program focuses on improving the safety and effectiveness of fire fighters by enabling the effective use of existing and new technologies and tactics. Increasing the safety and effectiveness is critical to reducing fire fighter fatalities and injuries, as well as the cost of fire service. For existing and emerging technologies, performance must be […]
NIST to Conduct Technical Study on Impacts of Joplin, Mo., Tornado
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) today* said that it will conduct a full technical study on the impacts of the May 22, 2011, tornado that struck Joplin, Mo. The remains of what was once a home improvement store in Joplin, Mo., showing the destructive power of the tornado that struck the area […]
Standpipe Systems and Operational Insights
There are some discussions emanating and emerging regarding the Medical Center Fire in Asheville, NC that claimed the life of a highly regarded Captain and injured numerous firefighters. Emerging reports are discussing water supply, standpipe operability and integrity and deployment delays affecting fire behavior, growth, intensive and operational risks during the time in which water […]
Residential Fire Sprinklers Save Lives
Residential Fire Sprinklers Save Lives In 2009, only 20% of reported fires occurred in one- and two-family homes but these fires caused 70% (2,107) of all civilian fire deaths. Homes also account for the largest share of civilian fire injuries and direct property damage. Despite the fact that these figures represent improvement over the last […]
Woonsocket (RI) Eight Alarm Mill Fire: Caused by Welding
A 112-year-old building, once the home of the Woonsocket Rubber Co., a firm that made decoy tanks for the D-Day invasion in World War II and later manufactured Keds sneakers, was destroyed Tuesday night by a spectacular fire. Smoke from the blaze could be seen as far away as Providence.Fire Chief Gary Lataille said 10 […]
San Francisco FD: The Diamond Heights Fire Updates
Updates from San Francisco; From KCBS: http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2011/06/03/san-francisco-firefighter-remains-critical-fallen-colleague-mourned/ New Photos; http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/photo-galleries/2011/06/02/firefighter-killed-in-san-francisco-blaze/ From KTVU; http://www.ktvu.com/index.html http://www.ktvu.com/video/28120861/index.html Injured Firefighter Remains In Critical Condition SAN FRANCISCO: Raw Interview With Injured Firefighter’s Brother On Family’s Vigil SLIDESHOW: Images From Fatal Diamond Heights Blaze SAN FRANCISCO: Emergency Call Audio Reveals Desperate Attempts To Save Injured Firefighters One Firefighter Dies, Another Struggles […]
Looking Back at The Cherry Road Townhouse Fire, Double LODD; DCFD 1999
Looking Back at The Cherry Road Townhouse Fire, Double LODD; DCFD May 30th, 1999 On May 30, 1999, (DCFD) fire fighters responded to a box alarm involving a townhouse fire at 3146 Cherry Rd NE, Washington, DC 20018-1612. DCFD FireFighter Anthony Phillips, Engine 10 DCFD FireFighter Louis Matthews, Engine 26 From the NIOSH Report: The […]
Fire Behavior 101; Taking it to the Streets
Fire Behavior Fire Dynamics Fire Dynamics is the study of how chemistry, fire science, material science and the mechanical engineering disciplines of fluid mechanics and heat transfer interact to influence fire behavior. In other words, Fire Dynamics is the study of how fires start, spread and develop. But what exactly is a fire? Defining Fire […]
Charleston Sofa Super Store Fire; Final NIST Report Issued
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released its final report on its study of the June 18, 2007, fire at the Sofa Super Store in Charleston, S.C., that trapped and killed nine firefighters, the highest number of firefighter deaths in a single event since 9/11. The final report was strengthened by […]
ENGINE COMPANY STANDPIPE OPERATIONS:PRESSURE-REGULATING DEVICES
ENGINE COMPANY STANDPIPE OPERATIONS:PRESSURE-REGULATING DEVICES FireEngineering.com Feb 1, 2005 BY DAVID M. McGRAIL For most in the American fire service, pressure-regulating devices and specifically pressure-reducing valves (PRVs) were virtually unknown prior to 1991. It was only after the tragic One Meridian Plaza high-rise fire, which occurred in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on February 23, 1991, that PRVs […]
One Meridian Plaza High Rise Fire: Twenty Years Ago
Fire Operations One Meridian Plaza On what began as an uneventful Saturday night twenty years ago, a fire on the 22nd floor of the 38-story Meridian Bank Building, also known as One Meridian Plaza, was reported to the Philadelphia Fire Department on February 23, 1991 at approximately 2040 hours and went on to burned for […]
Multiple Alarm Operations with Wind Driven Fire
The five alarm fire that ran through a seven story multiple occupancy (MO) apartment building in the Flatbush Section in the Borough of Brooklyn (NYC) this weekend considerably challenged operating companies of the FDNY as the fire was fueled and spread in rapid success due to significant wind conditions compounded by news reports that a […]
The Station Nightclub February 20, 2003 Revisted
A fire occurred on the night of February 20, 2003, at The Station Nightclub located in West Warwick, Rhode Island. A band that was performing that night, during its performance, used pyrotechnics that ignited foam insulation lining the walls and part of the ceiling of the platform being used as a stage. Based on a […]
