Challenges to Fire Safety in Tall Buildings.
Challenges to Fire Safety in Tall Buildings.
(106 K)
Gann, R. G.
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; fire safety;
survival; escape means; evacuation; safety engineering
Abstract:
In order to increase the chances of survival during a
fire emergency, the time available for a person to leave
the danger zone must be longer than the time needed to
make the escape. For tall buildings, providing time for
people to reach safety requires unique considerations
with regard to the potential for flame spread,
challenges in fire suppression, the extended time
occupants could be exposed to smoke and heat, and the
potential for thermal weakening of the building
structure. Over the past two decades, there have been
major advances in both the science of fire and its
application to fire safety engineering. This
presentation will summarize five tactical opportunities
to provide enhanced fire control and escape time. All of
these issues will be presented in the context of the
technical findings and recommendations of the NIST World
Trade Center Investigation.
Building and Fire Research Laboratory
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Gaithersburg, MD 20899