A standard procedure is needed for obtaining smoke toxic potency data for use in fire hazard and risk analyses. Room fire testing of finished products is impractical, directing attention to the use of apparatus that can obtain the needed data quickly and at affordable cost. This report examines the first of a series bench-scale fire tests to produce data on the yields of toxic products in both pre-flashover and post-flashover flaming fires. The apparatus is the radiant furnace in NFPA 269 and ASTM E 1678. Test specimens were cut from finished products that were also burned in room-scale tests: a sofa made of upholstered cushions on a steel frame, particleboard bookcases with a laminated finish, and household electric power cable. Initially, the standard test procedure was followed, with a variation to reduce the contribution to the effluent of post- flaming pyrolysis. Subsequent variations in the procedure included cutting the test specimen into small pieces and performing the tests at a reduced oxygen volume fraction of 0.17. The yields of CO2 CO, HCl, and HCN were determined. The yields of other toxicants (NO, NO2, formaldehyde, and acrolein) were below the detection limits, but volume fractions at the detection limits were shown to be of limited toxicological importance relative to the detected toxicants. In general, dicing the test specimen and performing the tests at the reduced oxygen volume fraction had little effect on the toxic gas yields, within the experimental uncertainties. The exceptions were an increase in the CO yield for diced specimens at reduced oxygen, a decrease in the HCN yield from the intact sofa and cable specimens at reduced oxygen, and an increase in the HCN yield from dicing the cable specimens. In none of the procedure variations did the CO yield approach the value of 0.2 found in real-scale post flashover fire tests.

A standard procedure is needed for obtaining smoke toxic potency data for use in fire hazard and risk analyses. Room fire testing of finished products is impractical, directing attention to the use of apparatus that can obtain the needed data quickly and at affordable cost. This report presents examination of the second of a series bench-scale fire tests to produce data on the yields of toxic products in both pre-flashover and post-flashover flaming fires. The apparatus is the ISO/TS 19700 controlled equivalence ratio tube furnace. This apparatus uses a mechanical feed mechanism to supply solid fuel into a tube furnace at a pre-determined rate, so that the global equivalence ratio can be adjusted. The test specimens were cut from finished products that were also burned in room-scale tests: a sofa made of upholstered cushions on a steel frame, particleboard bookcases with a laminated finish, and household electric cable. Initially, the standard test procedure was followed for two fire stages, well ventilated flaming and post- flashover. Subsequent variation in the procedure included dicing the specimen, further decreasing the equivalence ratio (well ventilated flaming) or increasing it (post-flashover), increasing the mass loading while maintaining the equivalence ratio, and increasing the fuel feed rate while maintaining the equivalence ratio. The yields of CO2 CO, HCl, and HCN were determined. The yields of other toxicants (NO, NO2, formaldehyde, and acrolein) were below the detection limits, but volume fractions at the detection limits were shown to be of limited toxicological importance relative to the detected toxicants. In general, the largest effects were seen between the two fire stages. The other variations within the fire stage had minor effects on gas yields. Under post-flashover conditions, the sum of the CO2 and CO yields frequently accounted for half or less of the carbon originally in the specimen. As a result, the gaseous combustion products cannot be used to estimate the mass burning rate. Under post flashover conditions, the CO yield for the sofa approached the value of 0.2 found in real-scale postflashover fire tests. However, for the bookcase and cable it did not. Yields of HCl from the cables generally approached their notional yields under well- ventilated conditions, and HCN was most readily detected from the sofa under post-flashover conditions at toxicologically significant concentrations.

A standard procedure is needed for obtaining smoke toxic potency data for use in fire hazard and risk analyses. Room fire testing of finished products is impractical, directing attention to the use of apparatus that can obtain the needed data quickly and at affordable cost. In this work we compare yields of toxic gases generated by four bench scale apparatus to previously conducted room-scale fires. The bench scale apparatus are the radiant apparatus in NFPA 269 and ASTM E 1678, the smoke density chamber in ISO 5659-2, a controlled-atmosphere version of the cone calorimeter (ASTM E 1354), and the tube furnace in ISO/TS 19700. In the bench scale experiments, the test specimens were cut from finished products that were also burned in the room-scale tests: a sofa made of upholstered cushions on a steel frame, particleboard bookcases with a laminated finish, and household electric cable. The yields of CO2 CO, HCl, and HCN were determined. The yields of other toxicants (NO, NO2, formaldehyde, and acrolein) were below the detection limits, but volume fractions at the detection limits were shown to be of limited toxicological importance relative to the detected toxicants. The bench scale and room scale yields are compared, and the bench scale apparatus are assessed for the degree to which they accurately predict room scale yields. The results of this study provide a better basis for obtaining toxic potency input data for fire modeling than currently exists.

This report summarizes the measurement results and recommended procedures for responding to building plumbing system contamination incidents and restoring the water system to safe operation. The recommendations are based on analysis of the results of a measurement and modelling research project investigated contamination and decontamination issues related to building plumbing systems.

One of the most important aspects of effective firefighter response to an emergency event is awareness of the location of the firefighters involved, especially in cases with limited visibility due to darkness, heavy smoke, or unfamiliar and changing environments. Location and tracking systems (LTS ) have been developed and are being refined to aid firefighting operations or the rescue of firefighters in distress. In this National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) technical note, LTS technologies are examined with the goal of establishing structural and electromagnetic scenarios that are representative of situations in which firefighters are most in need of this technology. Firefighter injury and fatality data are studied to determine the building and occupancy types that are associated with the highest risk of injuries. Current radio frequency (RF) regulations are explored to provide guidance on the electromagnetic landscape in which LTS are expected to operate on the fire ground. The potential effects of RF attenuation, RF multipath, and RF interference, which impact the ability of LTS to operate and communicate with incident command posts, are also discussed. Notional building and electromagnetic scenarios are presented to support the development of future test methods and standards that will appropriately challenge and evaluate LTS performance. These scenarios are also useful for fire departments and local jurisdictions in determining which types of firefighter LTS may be most effective in the types of structures and occupancies in their community.

This report documents the stress-strain behavior of a collection of structural steels recovered from the collapse of the World Trade Center. These steels, combined with literature data form the basis of a model for the stress-strain behavior of structural steels in general. The model accounts for the lost of strength, the decrease in work hardening and the increase in the strain-rate sensitivity with increasing temperature. For general structural steels, it takes the measured yield strength as its only input parameter. The new model predicts the stress-strain behavior of the steels slightly better than the existing Eurocode 3 stress-strain model.

The purpose of this document is to provide the foundation for the development of a guidance document on emergency communication message content and dissemination strategies. The document answers three major questions regarding emergency communication systems: 1) What technology exists or is proposed for use in emergency notification? 2) What approaches are currently being used to disseminate messages? 3) How does the public respond to different types of information and information sources? The document begins with a discussion of the technology that exists or is proposed for use in emergency notification, along with the positive and negative aspects of each system. The ways in which social media tools can be used to provide warnings in emergencies are included. Second, the document discusses the various types of emergencies for which warnings are needed, the range of protective actions that are taken by building occupants in emergencies, and the nature of the information required based upon the emergency type. The emergency communication systems installed in two different college campuses are described as examples of approaches used to disseminate warnings during emergencies. Finally, a comprehensive literature review is presented on how the public responds to various types of information and information sources both in emergency and non-emergency conditions. A summary list of the relevant findings from each literature source is assembled in Appendix A to identify the most effective ways to create or disseminate messages to achieve optimal occupant response. Detailed annotations for each source are presented in Appendix B.

This body of work provides detailed information on the nature of the Shenandoah Retirement Home Fire in Roanoke County, Virginia on December 14, 1989. It will assist policymakers who must decide on allocations of resources between fire and other pressing problems, and within the fire service to improve codes and code enforcement, training, public fire education, building technology, and other related areas.

To develop a clear picture of the specific requirements of the rural arson control system, the IAFC conducted in-depth case studies of these systems in four rural counties. The results from visits to rural arson control programs in seven states are incorporated in this report..

This Orientation Manual provides practical information: both rescue techniques, and preparedness information for the first responder who will encounter people with visible and non-visible disabilities through their work. This publication can assist first responders in advance or make critical emergency decisions. This publication will help first responders to confidently work with the disability community toward the goal of protecting and saving lives and minimizing trauma.

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) agencies regardless of service delivery model have sought guidance on how to better integrate their emergency preparedness and response activities into similar processes occurring at the local, regional, State, tribal, and Federal levels. This primary purpose of this project is to begin the process of providing that guidance as it relates to mass care incident deployment.

As part of the second needs assessment of the U.S. fire service, a rough comparison was made between needs reported in the first needs assessment survey and resources requested and granted to the same fire departments in 2001-2004 under the Assistance to Firefighters Grant program.

Tests were conducted to assess the performance of various residential smoke alarms to kitchen fires and nuisance alarm cooking scenarios. A test structure representing a kitchen, living room and hallway was constructed to conduct the tests. Eight different residential smoke alarms types, two photoelectric models, two ionization models, two dual sensor models, and two multi-sensor, intelligent models were used in this study. The data gathered provided insight into the susceptibility of alarm activation from exposures to typical cooking events and alarm times for actual kitchen fires. The effects on the type of alarm, and its distance from the cooking activity or fire were examined. Combustible materials typically found on a counter top can spread flames to overhead cabinets, and a single empty 0.6 m wide 1.0 m tall cabinet can produce a peak heat release rate nearly sufficient to flashover a small room. A protective metal barrier on the bottom and side facing the range tended to limit the spread of flames to the cabinet and reduce the heat release rate. All smoke alarms responded before hazardous conditions developed. The I1 alarm tended to respond first at a given location. Results show smoke alarms placed at the furthest location may provide less than 120 s of available safe egress time, which suggests a more central alarm location closer to the kitchen for this configuration. Ten cooking activities were examined to determine an alarm s propensity to activate to cooking aerosols. In most cases, the propensity to nuisance alarm decreased as the distance from the cooking source increased. Alarms that rely on sensitive ionization chambers (here I1 and D2) experience more nuisance alarm activations across all cooking activities and locations. All alarms except I1 and D2 experienced about the same nuisance alarm frequency across all cooking activities for locations outside the kitchen.

This incident highlights the need for the recognition of the dangers of oxygen-limiting silos regardless of their use and setting. Other issues identified are the need for a hazard and risk assessment process in decisionmaking on the fireground, the importance of site control and accountability, the need for group training in technical rescue operations, the coordination of non-fire department resources and the role of emergency management personnel fulfilling an active role in a unified command structure.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2001, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 2001 overall findings, this study includes assessments of trends over the past 6 years, as well as special analysis on actions that can immediately impact cardiac health and firefighter safety during emergency operations.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 1996, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 1996 overall findings, this study includes special analyses on violent firefighter deaths, physical fitness and its relation to firefighter deaths, and vehicle accidents.

The specific objective of this study was to identify all of the on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States in 1995, and to analyze the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of deaths in future years. In addition to the 1995 findings, this study includes a special analysis of the use of personal alert safety devices at fatal structure fires and a special report on several fatalities that occurred during technical rescue operations.