Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster.
Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the
World Trade Center Disaster.
(79 K)
Sunder, S. S.
CTBUH2005;
Renewing the Urban Landscape. 7th World Congress.
Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH2005).
Proceedings. October 16-19, 2005, New York City, NY,
2005.
Keywords:
high rise buildings; urban habitat; World Trade Center;
fire safety; fire investigations; fire investigators;
disasters; building collapse; evacuation
Abstract:
A major scientifically based investigation of the WTC
disaster was completed recently by NIST. The
investigations establish the technical causes of
building failures and evaluate the technical aspects of
response and evacuation. NIST is a neutral investigator,
as it is not a regulatory agency and does not issue
standards or codes. The primary objectives of the
investigation of the WTC disaster were to determine:
DT why and how the WTC buildings collapsed after the
initial impact of the aircraft DT why the injuries and
fatalities were so low or high depending on location DT
what were the procedures/practices used in design,
construction, operation, and maintenance of the WTC DT
which building and fire safety practices, standards, and
codes warrant revision. This session will discuss the
investigation efforts to make buildings, occupants, and
responders safer, specifically: DT Each tower's probable
collapse sequence after the aircraft impact and
subsequent fires on September 11, 2001 DT The rigorous
and detailed methodology used to analyze the aircraft
impacts, fire dynamics, structural thermal response, and
collapse due to the effects of aircraft impact and fire
damage DT The study of evacuation and emergency response
that included nearly 1,200 first-person interviews of
building occupants, first responders, and families of
victims DT Specific recommendations for improvements to
building and fire codes, standards, and practices,
including improvements to structural integrity, fire
protection, building evacuation, and emergency response.
Building and Fire Research Laboratory
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Gaithersburg, MD 20899