Preplanning Building Hazards
FRANCIS L. BRANNIGAN
Editor`s note: For further reference, consult Building Construction for the Fire Service, Third Edition (BCFS3). Page numbers, where applicable, are included after the caption.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
(1) This concrete hotel in Florida was remodeled. A two-story-high ballroom was divided into two floors. The new floor is a steel-bar joist floor and ceiling assembly. While the fire resistance rating achieved in a test might be equal to that of the solid concrete floor, the bar-joist assembly has significant fire deficiencies that are not present in the cast-concrete floors of the rest of the building (as shown in photo 2).
(2) Straight-up view with ceiling tiles removed. Any disruption of the ceiling tiles (a common occurrence) exposes all the lightweight steel-bar joists to the fire, which can cause rapid failure. Despite equivalent test ratings, all fire resistive assemblies are not the same in possible reaction to a real fire. Know your buildings! (BCFS3, pp. 292-294)
(3) This precast concrete warehouse with a precast concrete roof and only overhead sprinklers (none in the stacks) is a potential disaster for firefighters. Fire, protected from sprinkler water by solid plywood shelves, can rage uncontrollably. Roof beams can fail from heat exposure, causing wall collapse. The fire department should explore every avenue for getting this building properly sprinklered. Preplanning must put firefighter safety first, particularly when obvious hazards are unprotected. (BCFS3, Chapter 14, “Rack Storage”)
(4) No firefighter casualties occurred in the spectacular collapse of a steel-truss-supported roof in this lodge hall fire. Preplanning had disclosed the existence of the trusses, and the Wakefield (MA) Fire Department was aware that an identical collapse had occurred in Brockton, Massachusetts, a half-century earlier, killing 13 firefighters. The Wakefield preplan called for withdrawal if fire reached the attic. The roof collapsed with a huge fireball shortly after firefighters had withdrawn. The building is being rebuilt, fully sprinklered. Note that all building fire experience is valuable. An experience of 50 years ago is not “too old” as long as similar buildings/hazards exist. [Photo by Chris Whittington, Wakefield (MA) Fire Department.]
(5) This photo shows the collapsed truss. Look at the right upper quadrant and see the wood lath over the brick walls. Fire sneaked up into the attic behind the lath, just as it did in the Brockton theater fire. Most older buildings have such hidden fire paths. Look for them when preplanning. There are thousands of similar buildings with lightweight steel trusses hidden in the attic. Get out and look; don`t become a tragic example. If you locate such trusses or any of the other firefighter deathtraps I show here and have adapted your fire plans accordingly, please drop me a line. (BCFS3, p. 535) [Photo by Chris Whittington, Wakefield (MA) Fire Department.]
n FRANCIS L. BRANNIGAN, SFPE, recipient of Fire Engineering`s first Lifetime Achievement Award, has devoted more than half of his 56-year career to the safety of firefighters in building fires. He is well known for his lectures and videotapes and as the author of Building Construction for the Fire Service, Third Edition, published by the National Fire Protection Association. Brannigan is an editorial advisory board member of Fire Engineering. He may be reached at (301) 855-1982.
