High-Rise Building Fires Flashcards
(104 cards)
Open unprotected stairs in a multistory building that connect two or more floors for the same occupant space
Access stairs
A building with either ___ or more stories or a building where the highest occupied story is located more than ____ feet above the lowest level of fire department vehicle access
6 ; 75
Stairs that do not serve all building floors
Isolated stairs
Refers to the void between the ceiling (usually a drop ceiling) and the underside of the floor above
Plenum
Fire control rooms are required in buildings with occupied floors located more than ___ feet above the lowest level of fire department vehicle access
75
Modern high-rise buildings involve two basic designs
Residential & Commercial
These buildings are characterized by center hallways, numberous interior compartments and 24-hr occupancy
Residential high-rise buildings
These buildings are characterized by center-core construction with circuit corridors around the building’s core and likely large, open expanses on each floor
Commercial high-risebuildings
Typical requirements for buildings with atrium’s include
- Full sprinkler protection
- smoke exhaust systems
- smoke curtains
Two basic types of high-rise buildings in NOVA region are
Those constructed before 1976 & those constructed after 1976
Fire walls will typically have a minimum fire-resistance rating of
2 hours
To reduce its density low-mass concrete also referred to as “formed concrete” can consist of up to
20% air
Traditional concrete has a density range of
150 pounds per cubic foot (PCF)
Lightweight concrete ranges in density from
60-100 pounds per cubic foot
Super lightweight concrete carries a density of less than
60 pounds per cubic foot
Low-mass concrete provides a compression strength of
60,000 psi
Traditional concrete provides a compression strength of
20,000 psi
Under fire conditions lightweight concrete failure occurs at ____% of the designed load after ____ minutes of fire exposure
80% ; 45
Thermal cracks in light-weight concrete appear within ____ - _____ minutes of fire exposure
14 ; 16
Buildings with fixed windows should have designated breakable windows for emergencies and are marked with a
Maltese cross or fire helmet etched in the lower corner of the pane
At a minimum any doorway a hoseline passes through should either be controlled by a
Firefighter or chocked open
Usually have individual entrances and access only one section of the building
Isolated stairs
May be found in center-core construction and are independent stairwells
Scissor stairs
Open, unprotected stairways leading from floor to floor within a single occupant’s space
Access stairs