New York firefighters set fire to 20 houses in live burn experiment

The New York City Fire Department (FDNY) has set fire to 20 abandoned townhouses in a series of “live burn” experiments to test new ways of controlling fires and rescuing people inside burning homes.

Firefighters, in collaboration with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL), carried out the research.

Dan Madrzykowski, NIST fire protection engineer, who led the research at Governors Island said: “We turned these row houses into laboratories for real-life experiments that will provide guidance for improving firefighting tactics.”

The site was an abandoned coastguard barracks and the row houses were scheduled for demolition. The wood-framed with brick exterior townhouses were supplied with the same package of sofas, chairs, beds, and other furnishings for the experiments. Each townhouse was fitted with about 100 sensors to measure temperatures, heat flows, concentrations of toxic gases and other variables. Cameras were installed inside each row house, as well as in front and back, to monitor and record conditions.

The live burn experiments were done to show the changing dynamics of fires, said NIST. The contents of homes have changed significantly in the past few years. Plastics and other synthetic materials have replaced the natural materials that once made up the bulk of furniture items. In addition, modern living spaces tend to be more open, less compartmentalised.

As a result, interior house fires tend to burn faster and hotter today, said NIST.

Findings from the Governors Island tests will be shared with fire departments throughout the USA. In addition, NIST will use the data to improve the accuracy and improve the capabilities of its fire modeling software.

Shyam Sunder, NIST’s engineering laboratory director said: “These on-the-ground fire tests provide a great opportunity for NIST to gather data at full-scale. The data will strengthen the scientific underpinnings of modern firefighting tactics and technologies, improve their effectiveness, enhance firefighter safety, and lead to better building codes and standards.”

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