Preplanning Building Hazards
BY FRANCIS L. BRANNIGAN, SFPE
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.
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This photo was shot upward looking at a gypsum board “fire barrier” in an attic. Note that the gypsum board is just hanging loose and is missing from one side. Be aware of sloppy building and incompetent (or worse) building inspection. (BCFS3, 233)
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Water supply for sprinklers should be well guarded against interruption, accidental or malicious. These valves are padlocked, equipped with tamper switches, and located high on the wall to discourage meddling. (BCFS3, 589)
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The basic function of a sprinkler head is to hit and suppress an incipient fire. Sometimes, sprinklers are seriously misused. In this case, a single sprinkler is located near a stairway exit. Apparently, building officials think that sprinklers will cut off the fire and smoke. Sprinklers are not designed to do that. A water spray system, substituted for fire doors (for convenience in moving merchandise) failed in the K-Mart Warehouse fire when pressurized cans rocketed through the spray. This head could dump scalding water down on firefighters without hitting the fire at all. (BCFS3, 431)
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This ASTM E119 fire resistance test was conducted some years ago at the National Bureau of Standards (now NIST) on a wood/gypsum board/corrugated paper floor and ceiling assembly for apartment houses. A one-hour fire resistance rating was sought. The weight of the framework seen was equal to the required 40 pounds per square foot static load required. (If a higher load was required, compression members would be fitted to the ends of the triangles and extended upward to a framework, which would exert the required compressive load hydraulically.) Note the smoke. It was extremely noxious and irritating and drove out the test crew. Only the intrepid photographer remained to get the photos. Fortunately, the assembly failed the test. All fire resistive ratings that contain combustible material will develop deadly gases. They are not considered in the standard. (BCFS3, 541)
n FRANCIS L. (FRANK) BRANNIGAN, SFPE, recipient of Fire Engineering`s first Lifetime Achievement Award, has devoted more than half of his 57-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.
