Collapse of Burning Buildings: A Guide to Fireground Safety

The first book to explain in great detail how structures collapse when destroyed by a fire, this best-selling text has been completely updated. Based on the analysis of hundreds of collapse sites and interviews with firefighters rescued from beneath tons of collapse rubble, Chief Dunn instructs readers in how to survive burning building collapse. Firefighters, building code officials, architects and engineers will all find this text an invaluable resource.

New to this second edition

An examination of the World Trade Center collapse

A discussion of changes in the collapse zone

An overview of the collapse problems created by illegal renovations and the shift to the performance code from the specification code

A look at the increasing "through the door and through the floor" collapse dangers created by lightweight wood trusses and wood I-beams

A review of how Type II noncombustible steel construction is replacing ordinary construction and distorting the fire size-up experience

How firefighters can manage collapse dangers like: floor, peaked roof, and lightweight construction collapses

A timber truss trilogy case study, and NIOSH case study references

A new section covering buildings under demolition in the chapter on buildings under construction

Lessons learned from the terrorist attacks in Oklahoma City and New York City, which have changed the collapse search and rescue plan

A firefighting exit strategy for use when there is a collapse danger