Dollhousing
During my visit to FDIC at Indianapolis, I was introduced to a phenomenon which had only recently received adequate attention: Wind Driven Conditions. In essence, it is quite simple: in a high-rise building, the wind presses against an open vented fire. The interior attack team makes entry to the flat and gets cremated in no time. No amount of water will be sufficient, and there’s no time for retreat.
NIST recently performed a series of tests including firefighting options, and this is what I aimed to recreate here. A dollhouse is nothing else than a plywood box which we use to demonstrate fire and smoke behavior.
In this case, I refined the dollhouse with a simulated corridor at the back, which represents the path of attack leading from an interior stairwell. On the A side, I had a turbofan blowing wind into the fire. Here is the resulting flame:
Which shows well why exactly FFs get grilled. So the solution must be to put the fire out initially from the outside, and then opening the door to the burning compartment.
Worked like a breeze, I am really pleased with the outcome.
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Welcome
Welcome to Irakli West's personal pages on the Web. I am Danish, live close to Munich in Germany, and run FWnetz, an online magazine and training resource for firefighters. In real life, I am Regional Manager Northern Europe for Paratech, teach Heavy Rescue (it's fun, challenging and serves a good purpose) and try to learn more about USAR. I am a member of the Munich Volunteer Fire Department as well as @fire, a USAR and Wildfire NGO outfit.
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