Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...

 
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Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
MARCH 2020

Fighting Wildfires
• Australia
• United States
• South Africa
Insurer Guide:
Passive fire-protection systems

  • Restoring Notre Dame Cathedral • Protecting our mining assets
• New fire exhibition launched • Advances in automated firefighting
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
CONTENTS

                                                                                                                               2 TRAINING FPASA fire-training courses for 2020
                                                                                                                               4 VIEW The Editor’s view on industry topics and the contents
                                                                                                                                     of this issue
                                                                                                                               6 WILDFIRES: AUSTRALIA 2019-20 The 2019–20 Australian
                                                                                                                                     wildfire season has been described as cataclysmic and
                                                                                                                                     unprecedented
                                                                                                                               16 WILDFIRES: INDIGENOUS FIRE MANAGEMENT The future of                                Vol 46 No 1 • March 2020
                                                                                                                                     bushfire management lies in embracing Indigenous expertise                      ISSN 0259 - 1766
                                                                                                                               18 WILDFIRES: S.A. FILM DOCUMENTARY New educational
                                                                                                                                     documentary highlights the complexity of wildfires in the
                                                                                                                                     Western Cape
                                                                                                                               20 WILFIRES: PRESCRIBED BURNS The tactic of prescribed
                                                                                                                                     burns encounters ongoing hurdles in America’s West
                                                                                                                               23 WILDFIRES: INVESTIGATION Startling negligence by a utility
                                                                                                                                     company caused a devastating wildfire
                                                                                                                               26 INSURER PROPERTY PROTECTION GUIDE Acceptability of

BUILT TO
                                                                                                                                     passive fire-protection systems in the South African
                                                                                                                                     environment
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     COVER: To tie in with our special Wildfires
                                                                                                                               30 FIRE EXHIBITIONS Securex 2020 is all fired up with the                             feature, the stunning cover photo is by

MEET THE
                                                                                                                                     introduction of the new Firexpo exhibition                                      Justin Sullivan of Cape Town-based Sullivan
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Photography, which has produced ‘Walking
                                                                                                                               32 LIBRARY Summaries of fire-related articles available from                          With Fire: A Wildfire Documentary’ for the
                                                                                                                                     the FPASA Library                                                               Western Cape Government Provincial

NEEDS OF ALL
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Disaster Management and Fire and Rescue
                                                                                                                               35 REMOTE-CONTROLLED MONITORS An analysis of remote-                                  Services. Read more about the
                                                                                                                                     controlled monitors for fixed firefighting systems                              documentary on pg 18

COMMUNITIES
                                                                                                                               40 COMMERCE Passive fire protection through fire
                                                                                                                                     compartments in construction and maintenance
                                                                                                                               42 COMMERCE A new range of smoke detectors for the South
                                                                                                                                     African market
                                                                                                                               44 PROTECTING MINING ASSETS Fire-protection systems are
STORAGE TANKS AND WATER SOLUTIONS                                                                                                    essential for high-value mining industry assets                                 Australia’s Black summer
          ®
SBS Tanks , a proudly South African company based in Pinetown, Kwazulu Natal, specialises in liquid storage solutions          47 FDIA MEMBERSHIP LISTING                                                            Cataclysmic and unprecedented wildfires
within the South African market servicing a multitude of industry sectors including Mining, Fire Protection, Municipal,                                                                                              See page 6
Water Conservation, Food and Beverage, and Agriculture.
The SBS Tanks® range has been designed, developed and engineered with expertise gained from over 20 years of                   Publisher                                         Design and Production               Advertising executive
                                                                                                                               Fire Protection Association of                    De Roche Repro                      Barbara Spence
experience within the international water storage industry. SBS Tanks® offers a broad product range of liquid storage          Southern Africa                                                                       Avenue Advertising
                                                                                                                                                                                 Printing
tanks for multiple applications, from 12 kilolitres in capacity to the largest single storage solution of it’s kind, the       Incorporated Association not for gain
                                                                                                                                                                                 Law Print                           P O Box 71308
                                                                                                                               Reg. No. 1973/000022/08                                                               Bryanston 2021 South Africa
impressive 3,3 megalitre capacity water storage tank. Manufactured from pre-fabricated Zincalume® steel panels, and                                                              Publisher’s Address:                Tel: (011) 463-7940
                                                                                                                               Editor
ƼWWHGZLWKDQDSSURYHGOLQHU6%67DQNV® are highly resistant to corrosion and proven to be an effective and reliable         Mike Simpson                                      PO Box 15467 Impala Park 1472       barbara@avenue.co.za
product offering.                                                                                                              mike@media-simpson.com                            Springbok Road Bartlett Boksburg    www.avenue.co.za
                                                                                                                                                                                 Telephone: (011) 397-1618
As a company, SBS Tanks® operates on a shared set of corporate values and principles, with customer focus and ongoing          FPASA Consultant                                  Satellite Tel: (011) 552-6908/9     Fire Protection is a membership magazine
                                                                                                                               Renay Sewpersad                                   Telefax (011) 397-1160              published quarterly by the FPASA.
investment in research and development being key elements. We as a corporate entity believe that, not only is it possible                                                        or (086) 647-1633
to achieve our objectives through positive business practice, but we can equally take positive steps toward framing our                                                          library@fpasa.co.za                 The views expressed in articles by outside contributors are
future simultaneously.                                                                                                                                                           www.fpasa.co.za                     not necessarily those of the FPASA.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Permission must be obtained from the FPASA before
                                                                                                                                                                  AUDIT BUREAU                                       material in this journal is reprinted or broadcast and
                                                                                                                      LEVEL
                                                                                                                      B-BBEE                                                                                         acknowledgement must be given.
                                                                                                                                                               OF CIRCULATIONS

Call +27(0)86    048 2657 or visit www.sbstanks.co.za for more information.                                                                                                           Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                 1
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
TRAINING

    Fire protection training
    courses for 2020
          he following are details of the                           Government SETA (LGSETA) or CFPA                                        FPASA members and stakeholders

    T     FPASA’s comprehensive range of
          Fire Protection courses on offer for
    the remainder of 2020.
                                                                    Europe. Training takes place at the
                                                                    FPASA facility near OR Tambo
                                                                    International Airport in Boksburg, or
                                                                                                                                          qualify for discounts of 5-30%.
                                                                                                                                          For more information, contact Renay on
                                                                                                                                          011 397 1618. Or email her:
      All courses are accredited by an                              arrangements can be made for on-site                                  renay@fpasa.co.za
    appropriate body – such as the Local                            training at the client’s premises.

                Course dates and details as follows:
                                        TITLE                               APR        MAY          JUN           JUL        AUG         SEPT         OCT    NOV     DEC
                  1 Basic Fire-Fighting Module                                           07                       16                      03                  05
                  2 Fire-Fighting & Evacuation                                           06          10           15          05          02           07     04        02
                  3 Workplace Fire-Fighting, &Evacuation 20-23                                          29- 02              24-27                    26-29     30- 03
                    Breathing Apparatus Optional add-on or
                                                }
                    Grass Fire-Fighting standalone course
                  4 Fire Risk Assessment & Prevention                                  11-15                   06-10                    14-18        19-23           07-11
                    Strategies
                  5 Advanced Fire Prevention                                                                   20-24                         28- 02
                                                                                                              & 27-31                            & 05-09
                  6 Fire Appliance Reconditioning                         20-24        18-22       22-26       06-10        03-07       07-11        12-16   09-13 07-11
                  7 Plan Appraisal: A detailed analysis of                                         08-12                                07-11
                    SANS 10400 - Parts A, T & W
                  8 CFPA Principles in Fire Safety                                                                                                           23-27
                    Engineering
                  9 Fundamentals of Fire Investigation                                 25-29                   20-24                                 12-26
                 10 Advanced Fire Investigation                                                                                                              16-19
                    Techniques
                 11 Sprinkler Pumps: Inspection and                                                            13-15                                         02-04
                    Testing
                 12 Bylaws                                                                         22-25                                                     09-12
                 13 CFPA Europe Fire Safety Diploma -                                                09                                                       03
                    Technical Cycle Exam (Diploma)
                 14 Insurer Fire Impact Reduction                                                    03
                    Strategy (InFIRes) Seminar
                NOTE: 1. Courses can be arranged on-site on request - subject to a minimum number of delegates and suitable facilities.
                      2. The Association reserves the right to postpone or cancel a course.
                      3. These dates may be subject to change without notice. The amended course dates will be available on our website www.fpasa.co.za.

    Diplomas on offer: Europe Fire Safety – Technical Cycle & Management Cycle
    Bookings:                                                       Library:
    college@fpasa.co.za or                                          library@fpasa.co.za
    support@fpasa.co.za or
    marketing@fpasa.co.za                                           Membership/Publication
    011 397 1618/19                                                 Enquiries:
                                                                    reception@fpasa.co.za
    Technical Enquiries:
    compliance@fpasa.co.za                                          Finance:
                                                                    accounts@fpasa.co.za

2                                                                           Fire Protection • March 2020
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
EDITOR’S VIEW

    Focusing on wildfire
    challenges from
                                                                                                                                              When safety and
    around the world                                                                                                                          quality matter
             elcome to the first 2020 issue    climate has warmed just over 1°C since      Services which is attracting positive              most, trust the
    W        of Fire Protection, your
             quarterly magazine for fire
    industry professionals in Southern
                                               1910, leading to an increase in the
                                               frequency of extreme heat events”.
                                                   So a rise of only 1°C was a key,
                                                                                           reviews (see our article on pg 18).
                                                                                              Moving away from Wildfires, don’t
                                                                                           miss another in our series of Insurer              BSI Kitemark                  TM

    Africa.                                    although certainly not only, contributor    Property Protection Guides. Our article
        In South Africa we know a thing or     to the wildfire carnage that devastated     on page 26 deals with Acceptability of
    two about wildfires. They are, and         Australian over the period now known        Passive Fire-Protection Systems.
    always have been, a part of the local      as Black Summer (see our extensive              As always, Fire Protection features
    landscape.                                 coverage from pg 6). It is indeed a         many though-provoking and hopefully
        They occur as a natural                frightening thought for the fire industry   useful articles. Please enjoy your latest
    phenomenon in grasslands, woodlands,       in South Africa!                            read, courtesy of the FPASA.
    fynbos, and sometimes in indigenous             Speaking of frightening, I was
    forests. Often our wildfires are started   certainly alarmed to read of the
                                                                                           Mike Simpson
    by lightning or, in mountainous regions,   experiences of one senior Australian
    by falling rocks. Many are started by      firefighter, who told of raging fires so    Editor
    accident by people being careless with     huge that they created their own
    open flames and indifferent to the
    consequences of their carelessness.
                                               weather as they moved across the
                                               landscape, defying attempts to use
                                                                                                                                       The world’s leading standards,
                                               traditional weather forecasting methods
        According to Working on Fire,
    climate change is expected to increase     to predict what the fires would do next.                                                testing and certification organization.
    temperatures over parts of the interior
    of South Africa by as much as 3-5          Prescribed burns face                                                                   • Fire System Installation and Maintenance (SANS 10139 / SANS 14520)
    degrees C by the end of the century.       problems in the United States
    Longer dry spells may also occur more
                                                                                                                                       • Portable Fire Equipment (SANS 1910 / SANS 1567)
                                               Continuing our Wildfires theme in this
    frequently during all seasons. Rising      issue, we’ve also examined the                                                          • Alarm Systems (EN 54)
    temperatures and increased drought         experience in the Western part of the        SA’s premier magazine                      • Fire Suppression (EN 15004)
    frequencies combine to exacerbate the
    incidence of fire risk.
                                               United States (see pg 20), where public                for                              • Fire Equipment Maintenance (SANS 1475)
                                               opposition to the tactic of prescribed
                                               burns has played a part in several large       Fire Professionals                       • Emergency Lighting
    Average temperature rise of                fires there in recent times.                                                                                                                                 Contact us:
    only just over 1°C was critical                                                                 Editorial contributions
                                                                                                                                       • Hose reels (SANS 543)                                                 bsi.za@bsigroup.com
                                                  Then we move back home to find
    By as much as 3-5-degrees C! It’s a        out about a wildfire documentary                          are welcome                                                                                            bsigroup.com/en-ZA
    worrying scenario when you consider        commissioned by Western Cape
                                                                                                Send submissions to the
                                                                                                                                       New Schemes                                                              +27 (0) 12 004 0279
    that the Australian Bureau of              Government Provincial Disaster
                                                                                                  editor Mike Simpson                  • Service and maintenance of Wet- and Dry Risers
    Meteorology said in its State of the       Management and Fire and Rescue
                                                                                            E-mail: mike@media-simpson.com
    Climate 2018 report: “Australia's                                                                                                  • Kitchen Fire Protection Scheme

4                                                   Fire Protection • March 2020
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
WILDFIRES: AUSTRALIA 2019-20

                                                                                                                                      of going to Europe and burning every single square kilometre

    The catastrophic                                              C         ataclysmic; unimaginable; unprecedented; like an
                                                                            atom bomb. These are just some of the ways that
                                                                  the 2019–20 Australian wildfire season, now known
                                                                                                                                      of land in Switzerland, the Netherlands, Denmark, Slovakia
                                                                                                                                      and Luxumbourg – with a bit to spare. Smoke from the fires
                                                                                                                                      was detected 11 000km away in South America. According
                                                                                                                                      to NASA, an estimated that 306-million tonnes of carbon

    reality of Australia’s
                                                                  colloquially as “Black Summer”, have been described.                dioxide were emitted into the atmosphere.

                                                                       The startling figures bear this out. As of 9 March 2020             Around 3 700 Australian firefighters, most of them
                                                                  the fires had burnt an estimated 186 000 square kilometres          volunteers, were involved in fighting the fires. The Australian
                                                                  (18.6 million hectares), destroyed more than 5 900 buildings        military provides a further 3 000 personnel and
                                                                                                                                      approximately 300 firefighters came from other countries to

    Black Summer fires
                                                                  (including 2 779 homes), killed 34 people including several
                                                                  firefighters, and exterminated an estimated 1-billion animals.      assist. Up to 500 aircraft and helicopters were involved. One
                                                                                                                                      air tanker and two helicopters crashed.
                                                                     To put the fire size into perspective, that’s the equivalent

6                                  Fire Protection • March 2020                                                      Fire Protection • March 2020                                                       7
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
WILDFIRES: AUSTRALIA 2019-20

    Overview of the causes of the 2019-20                                   attributed to record-breaking temperatures and drought,            around 1% of NSW fires and 0.3% of Victorian fires by late                 recorded droughts occurred during the 21st century, the
    Black Summer wildfires                                                  accompanied by severe fire weather, are the primary causes         January 2020. Police in the state of Queensland said only                  Australian Bureau of Meteorology said.
                                                                            of the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season. These causes are        114 out of 1 068 fires were found to be deliberately or                    Specific cause: Climate change
    An official Senate Enquiry by the Federal government is still
                                                                            likely to have been exacerbated by long-term trends of             maliciously lit.
    collecting submissions until early April 2020 and will only                                                                                                                                                           Climate and fire experts agree that climate change is a
                                                                            warmer and dryer weather observed over the Australian land         Specific cause: Drought and temperature
    make known its findings in late 2021. There will also be                                                                                                                                                              factor known to result in increased fire frequency and
                                                                            mass.
    independent enquiries by the states of Victoria and New                                                                                    According to Farm Online and the Sydney Morning Herald, a                  intensity in south-east Australia, and although it should not
                                                                                The political nature of the crisis and its associated issues   likely contributor to the bushfire crisis was the ongoing                  be considered as the sole cause of 2019-20 Australian fires,
    South Wales, where the majority of the wildfires occurred.
                                                                            has also resulted in the circulation of large amounts of           drought in eastern Australia – the most severe on record for               climate change is considered very likely to have contributed
    However, there is already a large body of public evidence as
    to the likely causes.                                                                                                                      some fire-hit areas. Exacerbating the effects of diminished                to the unprecedented extent and severity of the fires, said
                                                                                                                                               rainfall in this drought was a record-breaking run of above-               the BBC and Guardian Australia in separate reports.
                                                                                                                                               average monthly temperatures, lasting 36 months to                             The crisis has led to calls for more action to combat
                                                                                                                                               October 2019.                                                              climate change. In December 2019, Australia had been
                                                                                                                                                  The combination of heat and drought caused critical                     ranked worst in terms of policy, and sixth worst overall, out
                                                                                                                                               low-fuel moisture content, with Victoria Country Fire                      of 57 countries assessed on the Climate Change
                                                                                                                                               Authority response controller Gavin Freeman telling the                    Performance Index, with the Morrison government labelled
                                                                                                                                               Australian Broadcasting Corporation that the underlying                    an increasingly regressive force, Guardian Australia reported.
                                                                                                                                               dryness of the bush had led to exceptionally high fire danger.                Originally downplaying the role of climate change in
                                                                                                                                                   Although Australia has naturally experienced high rainfall             causing the fires, the Bloomberg news agency said Prime
                                                                                                                                               variability and hot summers for millennia, the country has                 Minister Scott Morrison eventually conceded that climate
                                                                                                                                               recorded an increase of nearly 1.0°C in average annual                     change was one of many factors involved and added that
                                                                                                                                               temperatures since 1910, decreases in average rainfall in                  Australia was “playing its part” in the international effort
                                                                                                                                               south-eastern Australia since 1990, and the country's worst                against climate change.

    Towering inferno. Smoke and flames approach a town in rural Australia

        According to Australian Geographic magazine, Australia is           disinformation regarding the causes of the fire activity. This
    one of the most fire-prone countries on earth, and bushfires            unfortunately contributed to the neglect of credible
    form part of the natural cycle of its landscapes. However,              scientific research, expert opinion and the results of previous
    factors such as climate trends, weather patterns and                    government inquiries into the country’s numerous major
    vegetation management by humans can all contribute to                   wildfires.
    the intensity of bushfire seasons. The most destructive fires           Specific cause: Ignition
    in Australian history have usually been preceded by                     The major cause of ignition during the 2019-20 fire season
    extremely high temperatures, low relative humidity and                  in the states of New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria was
    strong winds, which combine to create ideal conditions for              lightning strikes, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
    the rapid spread of fire.                                               said. It reported that arson, which at the time was popularly
       The Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Guardian                 believed to be a key factor, was actually of little impact.
    Australia report that scientific experts and land management                While there were certainly arson incidents and a number
    agencies agree that severely below-average fuel moisture                of people were charged, arson had accounted for only               Soldiers help to evacuate people to a safer area on the other side of a river (Photo credit: Australian Department of Defence)

8                                                       Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                                  Fire Protection • March 2020                                                         9
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
WILDFIRES: AUSTRALIA 2019-20

Specific cause: Lack of prescribed burning?                           little to stop bushfires and save property in south-eastern
Conservative politicians and media primarily blamed a lack            Australia, with climate and weather conditions having
of prescribed burning and fire break management, although             primary influence.
such assertions have subsequently been heavily criticised                  According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the effect of
and disproven by scientific experts, said the Canberra Times          previous prescribed burns in slowing the 2019-20 Australian
and Guardian Australia.                                               fires and assisting fire suppression efforts remains unclear,
    Accompanying this was the assertion that environmental            although in many instances the fires were observed to burn
groups were responsible for the crisis by inhibiting prescribed       through cleared agricultural land and forest recently affected
burning, despite environmental groups holding relatively              by unplanned and prescribed burns, owing to the extreme
negligible political power compared to the main political             weather conditions and dryness of vegetation. Of particular
parties. Furthermore, the amount of prescribed burning in             note, the damaging Currowan fire burnt though a large area

                                                                                               PHOTO CREDIT: DEPARTMENT OF FIRE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES

Volunteer firefighters mop up one of the thousands of blazes

south-eastern Australia has been stated to have increased in            of Morton National Park, which in 2017 was subjected to
recent years, following the recommendation for increased                one of the largest prescribed burns ever successfully
prescribed burning from the 2009 Black Saturday Fires Royal             conducted in NSW.
Commission, reported Guardian Australia.                                Specific cause: Prevention of hazard reduction?
     Experts suggested that prescribed burning has been more            Throughout the Black Summer fire season there was public
difficult to achieve given recent trends towards warmer and             speculation that hazard-reduction strategies on public land
dryer conditions, said the Canberra Times. Experts have also            and in national parks had been blocked by activists from the
cast doubt on the effectiveness of fuel-reduction treatments,           Greens movement.
citing research which suggests that prescribed burning does
                                                                            However, the Guardian Australia newspaper disputed this,

                                                     Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                   11
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
WILDFIRES: AUSTRALIA 2019-20                                                                                                                                                    WILDFIRES: AUSTRALIA 2019-20

 saying: "Despite the [contrary] evidence, a claim persists that            Dickman's calculation had been based on highly
 a major contributing factor [to] Australia’s devastating fire
 season ... is not climate change but a conspiracy by
 environmentalists to 'lock up' national parks and prevent
 hazard-reduction activities such as prescribed burning and
                                                                        conservative estimates and the actual mortality would
                                                                        therefore be higher. The figure provided by Dickman included
                                                                        mammals (excluding bats), birds, and reptiles; and did not
                                                                        include frogs, insects, or other invertebrates. Other
                                                                                                                                                                                 Wildfires ‘created
                                                                                                                                                                                 their own weather’
 clearing of the forest floor”.                                         estimates, which include animals like bats, amphibians and
                                                                        invertebrates, also put the number killed at over a billion, the
 Devastating Ecological effects                                         Huffington Post reported.

 Prof. Chris Dickman, a fellow of the Australian Academy of                 Ecologists feared some endangered species were driven
 Science from the University of Sydney, estimated on                    to extinction by the fires, said The Washington Post. Though
                                                                        bushfires are not uncommon in Australia, they are usually of                                                   cientific modelling used by               height of the fires that some               Fires do what they want
                                                                                                                                                                                 S
 8 January 2020 that more than one-billion animals were
 killed by bushfires in Australia; while more than 800-million          a lower scale and intensity that only affect small parts of the                                                firefighters to predict how               communities had fires approaching
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Gillham said as the fires built they
 animals perished in New South Wales.                                   overall distribution of where species live. Animals that                                                       wildfires behave was ineffective          from almost all directions.“Everybody's
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             created their own weather, so data
                                                                        survived a bushfire could still find suitable habitats in the                                            because the fires were so big that they         saying the same thing; and that is that
     The estimate was based on a 2007 World Wide Fund for                                                                                                                                                                                                                    from the weather bureau became less
                                                                        immediate vicinity, which was not the case when an entire                                                created their own weather patterns, an          a lot of the scientific modelling that we
 Nature (WWF) report on impacts of land clearing on                                                                                                                                                                                                                          relevant. “We know roughly what's
                                                                        distribution is decimated in an intense event.                                                           incident controller told the Australian         use to try and predict where fire might
 Australian wildlife in New South Wales that provided                                                                                                                                                                                                                        happening, but the fires are basically
                                                                                                                                                                                 Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).                 run is not coping with what's
 estimates of mammal, bird and reptile population density in                                                                                                                                                                                                                 doing what they want in the
                                                                                                                                                                                     Andy Gillham, from the Bairnsdale           happening in the landscape, just purely
 the region.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 landscape,” he said.
                                                                                                                                                                                 incident control team in Gippsland,             because of the fire load,” he told ABC
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Gippsland.                                     Gillham added that the
                                                                                                                                                                                 Victoria, said in an interview at the

                                                                                                                                           PHOTO CREDIT: EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY

 A European Space Agency satellite image captures smoke and flames from multiple fires in New South Wales

           Research Sources:
           Australian Broadcasting Corporation             Guardian Australia newspaper
           Australian Bureau of Meteorology                Huffington Post newspaper
           Australian Geographic magazine                  NASA
           Canberra Times newspaper                        Sydney Morning Herald newspaper
           CNBC broadcasting                               The Washington Post newspaper
           Farm Online website                             Wikepedia                                                                                                             Some of the fires were so big that they created their own weather patterns

12                                                  Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                                                                       Fire Protection • March 2020                                                   13
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WILDFIRES: AUSTRALIA 2019-20

 unpredictable nature of the fires, and       spark new fires, conjure fire tornadoes             “They are a combination of a
 the fact that some communities could         and make fighting existing fires much           regular thunderstorm that everybody is
 see fires approach from multiple             more challenging.                               very familiar with, but with the
 directions, meant staying to defend                                                          explosive heat source from the fire
 properties was only an option for the        Smoke-infused                                   which actually makes them very
 few extremely well-prepared people           thunderstorms                                   peculiar,” Fromm said.
 who were experienced and understood                                                               These storms are capable of
                                              CNBC said the rising heat from the
 fire.                                                                                        producing cyclone-like winds, one of
                                              intense fires generated massive,
     But even then, he urged them to          powerful clouds called                          which lifted up a 10-tonne fire engine
 think twice. “We want to reinforce that      pyrocumulonimbus, which produced                operated by the New South Wales Rural
 message; just leave. There's no sugar-       smoke-infused thunderstorms.                    Fire Service and flipped it onto its roof,
 coating on this; there is no safe place,                                                     trapping the crew inside. One volunteer
                                                  Mike Fromm, a meteorologist at the
 [just] safer places.”                                                                        firefighter died as a result.
                                              US Naval Research Laboratory who has
    Meanwhile, broadcaster CNBC               researched these clouds extensively,
 reported that the fires created violent      told the broadcaster that he likened the
 weather systems that were able to            process to a volcanic eruption.

 Insurance industry hit is
 smaller than expected
 Although the Australia wildfires burned           “These bushfires are significant in        there is the possibility that the
 across an extremely large area, their        terms of duration and geographic                reinsurance impact will not be as
 reinsurance impact is proving to not be      breadth of burnt area,” Aon said in a           significant as [in] some previous
 as significant as some previous fires,       statement. “Definitions applied to              events.”
 according to major insurance company         bushfire events in reinsurance contracts             The main reason that insurers
 Aon.                                         limit recoverable damage either by time         expect to pay less is that 90% of
     The impact on the built                  (i.e. a maximum duration) or                    damage was in national parks. Only 8%
 environment has been significantly less      geographical extent (i.e. distance or           of damage was in what is classified as
 than what might have been expected.          territorial boundary). The nature of the        urban areas, while 2% occurred in what
 This is because the fires burned through     current losses from the bushfires means         is classified as residential areas.
 large remote areas, with the majority of
 impacted towns having populations of
 less than 10 000 inhabitants, the Aon
 analysis found.
      More than 23 000 bushfire-related
 insurance claims were lodged across the
 states of New South Wales,
 Queensland, South Australia and
 Victoria between November 2019 and
 February 2020, with an estimated value
 of 1.9-billion Australian dollars. The
 biggest insurance claim from a wildfire
 is 2.16-billion Australian dollars for the
 so-called Black Tuesday fires in the
 state of Tasmania.                           Insurance claims are lower than anticipates as most blazes occurred in national parks

14                                                 Fire Protection • March 2020
Fighting Wildfires Australia United States South Africa - Passive fire-protection systems - Fire Protection ...
WILDFIRES: INDIGENOUS FIRE-MANAGEMENT

 Aboriginal cultural burning near Parnngurr in the Pilbara Region of Western Australia                                                        An Aboriginal man sets a fire at Fish River in Australia’s Northern Territory (Photo credit: Nature Australia)

                                                                                                                                              originating in human activity) climate change is impacting                        “In recent years, there’s been renewed interest in

 The future of bushfire                                                                                                                       the frequency and intensity of the fires on this continent,
                                                                                                                                              changing the weather and the vegetation we can expect in a
                                                                                                                                              location, and often increasing the fire risks.”
                                                                                                                                                  The key message from recent social science research into
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Aboriginal peoples’ fire practices and knowledge, thanks in
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           part to books such as Bruce Pascoe’s Dark Emu; however, it
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           is interesting to note that non-Indigenous scientists have
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           been influenced by these ideas for some time.”

 management is to                                                                                                                             bushfire is, given that we cannot completely control fire and
                                                                                                                                              there are no absolute fixes, there is a need to create a better
                                                                                                                                              and more honest relationship of coexistence with traditional
                                                                                                                                              landowners, he believes.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Neale notes that if we look at early ideas of fuel
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           reduction burning, developed at the CSIRO (Commonwealth
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) in the 1960s
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           and 1970s, they were drawing on ethnographic and

 fully embrace                                                                                                                                    “Agencies and communities are already doing a lot in
                                                                                                                                              this direction, seeking to know more about the positive and
                                                                                                                                              negative outcomes of fires in the environment and to
                                                                                                                                              understand the risks different communities face. However,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           archaeological evidence about how, when and why
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Indigenous Australians used fire in the landscape.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Regrettably, that influence was not matched with any real
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           engagement with contemporary Aboriginal peoples.

 Indigenous expertise                                                                                                                         there is much more to do, including engaging much more
                                                                                                                                              extensively with Aboriginal peoples,” Neale says.

                                                                                                                                              The many benefits of engaging with
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Knowledge sharing is sometimes
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           negative and exploitative
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           “That said, the mistake that many government and other
                                                                                                                                              Indigenous Australians                                                       agencies can make, in Australia and overseas, is that they can
         ustralia’s recent out-of-control wildfire season                   that, for millennia, have regularly experienced bushfires. This   “A major aspect of my research is looking at the [numerous]                  be too focused on what Aboriginal peoples might have to

 A       seems to have shown us that modern science and                     means that many things people care about – like houses,           benefits from engaging with Traditional Owners and                           tell non-Indigenous peoples. We have to understand that, in
         technology is unable to successfully predict or cope               towns, humans, pets and farm animals – are put at risk.           Indigenous Australians about bushfire management. Many                       Australia and elsewhere, many Indigenous peoples’ past and
         with everything that nature can throw at us.                                                                                         Indigenous Australians have immense pride in their long                      present experiences of sharing their knowledge have
                                                                            Human and ecological timescales are                               history of skilful fire use, and we have solid evidence about                frequently been negative and exploitative. It’s pretty galling,
     Given that we cannot completely control fire and there
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           if you think about it, to follow up centuries of dispossession
 are no absolute fixes, we need to create a better and more                 vastly different                                                  the clear ecological, economic, social and health benefits to
                                                                                                                                              being engaged in caring for [the countryside]”.                              by asking for more,” he explains.
 honest relationship of coexistence with the traditional                    One of the key difficulties, he points out, is that human and
 owners of the land, says Dr Timothy Neale of the                                                                                                 According to Neale, most early European settlers in                          “There are better alternatives, and one has to think in
                                                                            ecological timescales are very different. “Someone can live in
 Cooperative Research Centre, an Australian government-                                                                                       Australia saw Aboriginal peoples’ fire practices as an                       terms of respectful partnership. As Indigenous scholars and
                                                                            a landscape for years and never experience a significant
 funded scientific research programme.                                                                                                        annoyance or a threat. Only a few settlers, often farmers,                   activists have been saying for a long time, non-Indigenous
                                                                            bushfire, and therefore reasonably not think of it as a high-
                                                                                                                                              saw the positive effects these practices could have on                       peoples have to give up some of their power and control if
     In an article for Fire Australia magazine, Neale notes that            risk area. But that landscape’s rhythm is actually ticking
                                                                                                                                              promoting regrowth and reducing the fuel available for                       they want to work together. We have to start from the
 since the end of the Second World War in 1945, Australians                 away on a timescale of decades or centuries, preparing itself
                                                                                                                                              future fires. Even fewer respected the importance of                         premise of Aboriginal peoples’ rights, as the First Peoples of
 have increasingly aspired not only to own their own homes,                 for a major fire.”
                                                                                                                                              Aboriginal’ fire practices in hunting, ceremony and                          this place, to speak authoritatively about Country. They must
 but to own homes close to coastlines and forests – close to                   He adds: “In addition to these mismatched timescales,
                                                                                                                                              communication.                                                               be supported to use their own knowledge and be treated as
 nature. Unfortunately, these same landscapes are places                    anthropogenic (environmental pollution and pollutants                                                                                          leaders in the management of their Country.”

16                                                     Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                                   Fire Protection • March 2020                                                         17
BUSHFIRES: S.A. FILM DOCUMENTARY

                                                                                                                                          Sullivan believes that fire is everyone’s fight and,                                             and learning from!” Good Things Guy called it “incredible”.

 New educational film                                                                                                                 therefore, South Africans should be doing everything in their
                                                                                                                                      power to prevent bushfires. They should also assist the men
                                                                                                                                      and women who fight bushfires and to come forward to
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               ‘Walking With Fire: A Wildfire Documentary’can be viewed
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           on YouTube, the Good Things Guy website, The South African
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           news website, or the SullivanPhotographyZA Facebook page.

 documentary highlights the                                                                                                           report anyone who is responsible for them.
                                                                                                                                          The organisation Garden Route Fire Watch called the film
                                                                                                                                      an “absolutely awesome documentary! Well worth watching
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           All photographs by Sullivan Photography

 complexities of bushfires in
 the Western Cape
       South African documentary film about bushfires in the        Photography, which produced the documentary, it only

 A     Western Cape is receiving positive reviews following its
       release in late 2019 by the Western Cape Government
 Provincial Disaster Management and Fire and Rescue
                                                                    scratches the surface of the complexities associated with
                                                                    bushfires in the province. The content includes interviews
                                                                    with firefighters and examines how many of these wildfires
 Services.                                                          start. Some start naturally, but most are a result of human
     The 33-minute film is entitled ‘Walking With Fire: A           activity.
 Wildfire Documentary’. It is an educational video aimed at            Sullivan and his small team spent four years putting the
 creating awareness and educating the public on the dangers         documentary together.
 of wildfires, and was born out of a larger dream to conserve            “This has been one hell of a journey and at times I
 environments globally from frequent and destructive                thought it wasn’t going to happen… Through all the sweat
 wildfires.                                                         and tears (there were definitely tears), the countless camera
     According to Justin Sullivan of Cape Town-based Sullivan       errors, close calls, [a] vehicle catching alight and [the]
                                                                    absolute amateur approach at the start, it’s finally out there.
                                                                    It’s not the original film I wanted, but it evolved into
                                                                                                                                                Need a workplace
                                                                    hopefully a beneficial educational video that will contribute
                                                                    in its own way,” he told the Good Things Guy website.
                                                                                                                                             fire risk assessment?
                                                                                                                                                    We can help
                                                                                                                                                                                The Association offers an array
                                                                                                                                                                                of fire risk management,
                                                                                                                                                                                consulting and engineering
                                                                                                                                                                                services, including legal
                                                                                                                                                                                     compliance reviews, fire
                                                                                                                                                                                          safety audits,
                                                                                                                                                                                            investigations and
                                                                                                                                                                                            evacuation
                                                                                                                                                                                            procedures and plans

                                                                                                                                      FIRE PROTEC TION A S SOCIATION OF SOUTHERN AFRIC A
                                                                                                                                          Incorporated Association not for Gain. Reg No 1973/000022/08 VAT Registration No.: 4110103100
                                                                                                                                      Tel: (011) 397-1618, Satellite Tel: (011) 552-6908/9, Fax: (011) 397-1160, www.fpasa.co.za

18                                                 Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                                                           Fire Protection • March 2020                                                    19
WILDFIRES: PRESCRIBED BURNS

                                                                                                                                             and public opposition,” Associated Press           “Overcoming public fears by              because of hot, dry conditions. Relaxing
                                                                                                                                             reported.                                      teaching about good smoke, bad smoke,        environmental restrictions has cleared
                                                                                                                                                 After a 2018 wildfire largely levelled     out-of-control fire and prescribed fire is   the way for more prescribed fires in
                                                                                                                                             the city of Paradise and killed 86             just one hurdle before firefighters can      some cases,” Associated Press reported.
                                                                                                                                             people, the state of California                put match to kindling,” Mohler told the
                                                                                                                                             prioritised 35 brush and other                 news agency. “It's the difference            New laws help fast-track
                                                                                                                                             vegetation-reduction projects that             between fire under our terms and             the burn process
                                                                                                                                             could all involve some use of                  fighting fire on Mother Nature's terms.”
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         The state of Oregon recently changed
                                                                                                                                             intentional fire, said Mike Mohler,                It can take years to plan and clear      air quality rules for planned fires to
                                                                                                                                             Deputy Director of the California              federal, state and local environmental       strike a balance between smoky winter
                                                                                                                                             Department of Forestry and Fire                and air pollution regulations. A burn        skies and bad summer blazes. California
                                                                                                                                             Protection.                                    among giant sequoia trees once took          proclaimed a state of emergency to
                                                                                                                                                                                            13 years to accomplish, said Michael         allow it to fast-track brush clearing.
                                                                                                                                             Public concern is preventing                   Theune, a spokesman for the Sequoia
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Most states and federal agencies in
                                                                                                                                             more prescribed burns                          and Kings Canyon national parks in
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         the U.S. West have ambitious goals they
                                                                                                                                                                                            California.
                                                                                                                                             But public concern is one of the reasons                                                    don't achieve, said Crystal Kolden, a
                                                                                                                                             that burns don’t always happen. In                 “In the American West, where the         University of Idaho forest and fire
                                                                                                                                             2012, for example, a prescribed burn in        landscape is steep and downed trees,         science professor whose study
                                                                                                                                             the state of Colorado got out of control       brush and other fuels have built up over     concluded that not enough prescribed
                                                                                                                                             and killed three people and destroyed          decades of fire suppression, the so-         fires are being done in the region.
                                                                                                                                             more than two dozen homes.                     called burn window can be short

 Firefighters retreat as a fire front approaches near the city of Carlsbad in California                                                     A water-bombing aircraft attacks a wildfire near Mendocino

 Tactic of prescribed
 burns encounters
 ongoing hurdles in
 America’s West
        he prescribed burn, a low-                      According to a late 2019 report by          “Prescribed fires are credited with

 T      intensity, closely managed fire
        intended to clear out
        undergrowth and protect
 national parks and other land, is
 considered one of the best ways to
                                                    the Associated Press news agency, a
                                                    study published in the journal Fire
                                                    found prescribed burns on federal land
                                                    in the last 20 years across the West has
                                                    stayed level or fallen, despite calls for
                                                                                                making forests healthier and stopping
                                                                                                or slowing the advance of some blazes.
                                                                                                Despite those successes, there are
                                                                                                plenty of reasons they are not set as
                                                                                                often as officials would like – ranging
 prevent catastrophic wildfires in the              more such burns.                            from poor conditions [in which to] to
 American West.                                                                                 safely [set a] burn, to bureaucratic snags

20                                                        Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                           Fire Protection • March 2020                                                       21
WILDFIRES: PRESCRIBED BURNS                                                                                                              WILDFIRES: INVESTIGATION

     “They know they need to be doing           conservation organisation, said                 shrubs, and that's the model these
 more prescribed fire; they want to be
 doing more prescribed fire,” she said.
 “They are simply unable to accomplish
 that.”
                                                reintroducing fire through prescribed
                                                burns is appropriate in the Sierra
                                                Nevada Mountains, where more
                                                frequent lightning-sparked fires and
                                                                                                prescribed burning advocates have
                                                                                                used,” Halsey told Associated Press.
                                                                                                “They say if we have younger fuels on
                                                                                                the landscape, we'll have less fires or
                                                                                                                                          Startling negligence by
                                                                                                                                          utility company caused
                                                                                                                                          devastating wildfire
                                                                                                                                                 egligence and failure to maintain      could have prevented the blaze from              company said it accepted the

                                                                                                                                          N      equipment by a now-bankrupt
                                                                                                                                                 utility company was the cause of
                                                                                                                                          the deadliest wildfire in the state of
                                                                                                                                                                                        occurring, they believed.
                                                                                                                                                                                            “The identified shortcomings in
                                                                                                                                                                                        PG&E’s inspection and maintenance of
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         conclusions. “We remain deeply sorry
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         about the role our equipment had in
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         this tragedy, and we apologise to all
                                                                                                                                          California’s history, an investigation has    the incident tower were not isolated,            those impacted.”
                                                                                                                                          found.                                        but rather indicative of an overall                  PG&E noted that it has accelerated
                                                                                                                                              Among the findings of the                 pattern of inadequate inspection and             inspections and “completed an
                                                                                                                                          California Public Utilities Commission        maintenance of PG&E’s transmission               unprecedented process to inspect every
                                                                                                                                          investigation was that a tower and            facilities,” the commission said in its          element of our electric system within
                                                                                                                                          hook which held an electrical                 findings.                                        the high-threat fire areas”. It has
                                                                                                                                          transmission line in place had not been           Failure to replace the hook was a            checked almost 730 000 transmission,
                                                                                                                                          checked in 17 years. The hook failed          contravention of PG&E’s own                      distribution and substation structures
                                                                                                                                          and the live wire then fell to the ground     maintenance manual, which stated that            and more than 25-million electrical
                                                                                                                                          and started a blaze.                          “this is a hazardous Priority A condition        components in those areas.
                                                                                                                                              The resulting out-of-control wildfire     which requires immediate response and            Editor's Note: For more information on
                                                                                                                                          in November 2018 all but destroyed            continued action until the condition is          the devastating wildfire at Paradise in
                                                                                                                                          the town of Paradise, a community of          repaired”.                                       California, see our article about
                                                                                                                                          around 26 000 people. A total of 85               In its response to the findings, the         Prescribed Burns on page 20
                                                                                                                                          people died and 18 800 buildings were
                                                                                                                                          destroyed. Only 5% of buildings in the
                                                                                                                                          town remained without serious damage
                                                                                                                                          after the fire.
                                                                                                                                              Saddled with crippling debt as a
 A ruined mobile home park near the town of Paradise, where a runaway wildfire killed 83 people in 2018
                                                                                                                                          result of its fire-related liabilities, the
                                                                                                                                          Pacific Gas and Electric Company
 Opposition from                                   blazes historically set by Native            lower intensity fires, and we can use     (PG&E) filed for bankruptcy. It has
 environmentalists                                 Americans are believed to improve            those areas to protect communities.       subsequently been determined that all
                                                   forests by clearing brush to allow taller    And that has never happened in wind-      victims will still be compensated by the
 According to the Associated Press
                                                   trees to thrive and opening sequoia          driven fires.”                            company.
 report, opponents cite the threat to
                                                   seed pods so they can reproduce.                The state of California
 wildlife and release of greenhouse
 gases. In California, some
                                                       But Halsey said prescribed fires         acknowledged in a draft environmental     Degraded hook should have
 environmentalists opposed intentional
                                                   don't help much of the rest of the           impact report that clearing vegetation    been replaced
                                                   state. The fire that tore through            may not slow or halt extreme fires.
 burns because they can destroy natural                                                                                                   During the investigation into the causes
                                                   Paradise showed how ineffective                 But successful prescribed burns can
 drought-tolerant shrubs and replace                                                                                                      of the Paradise wildfire, investigators
                                                   clearing underbrush can be – it roared       save property from some future fires,
 them with flammable invasive weeds                                                                                                       found that if the PG & E crews had
                                                   across 11 km that had burned just 10         supporters said.
 and grasses.                                                                                                                             checked the hook and tower they
                                                   years earlier.
    Rick Halsey of the California                                                                                                         would have seen that the hook was             Inadequate maintenance by an electricity utility caused the most devastating wildfire in
                                                       “It was still grasses and weeds and                                                badly degraded. Its timely replacement
 Chaparral Institute, a non-profit                                                                                                                                                      California's history

22                                                    Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                           Fire Protection • March 2020                                                          23
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                   mission
INSURER PROPERTY PROTECTION GUIDE

                                                                                                                                                  another room, or from one building to        1. SUITABILITY OF PASSIVE FIRE                  integrity, insulation ability and the

 Acceptability of passive                                                                                                                         another by means of minimum safety
                                                                                                                                                  distances. The requirement to minimise
                                                                                                                                                  the spread of fire within and between
                                                                                                                                                  buildings is clearly defined in the
                                                                                                                                                                                               PROTECTION (FIRE RESISTANCE):
                                                                                                                                                                                               With the exception of spatial
                                                                                                                                                                                               separation, the fire rating of passive
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               material’s own resistance to fire.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               PRINCIPLE 2
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               In the case of fire doors, as an example,

 fire-protection systems
                                                                                                                                                                                               fire-protection measures is provided as
                                                                                                                                                  National Building Regulations. See                                                           the intention of the door is to protect
                                                                                                                                                                                               a factor of time, in minutes. The time
                                                                                                                                                  Principle 2 of Part 2 of this article.                                                       the area of the opening the door is
                                                                                                                                                                                               factor is concluded following the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               covering, to the same specification as
                                                                                                                                                      In Part T of SANS 10400, several         testing of fire-separating elements such
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               the level of protection the fire wall is
                                                                                                                                                  sections provide passive fire protection     as fire walls and fire doors. In South
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               intended to provide. The fastening
                                                                                                                                                  deemed-to-satisfy requirements. These        Africa, the standard for testing is the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               methods as well as the frame must
                                                                                                                                                  include and are not limited to the           SANS 10177 suite of documents, as
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               carry the same fire rating as the door.
                                                                                                                                                  following:                                   well as SANS 428. Test certificates must
                                                                                                                                                                                               be provided by the supplier.                    Stability. Stability indicates the ability
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Spatial separation by means of
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               of the fire wall or door to remain stable
                                                                                                                                                    minimum safety distances;                      The four main aspects which are
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               for that specified minimum period of
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Division-separating elements and           evaluated during testing are stability,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               time, and not collapse or disintegrate
                                                                                                                                                    maximum division areas;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Occupancy separating elements;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Tenancy separating elements;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Partition walls and partitions;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Fire stopping between floors;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Protection of openings;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Raised access floors and suspended
                                                                                                                                                    floors of combustible materials;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Emergency routes;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Openings in floors;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Fire stopping of inaccessible
                                                                                                                                                    concealed spaces;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Protection in service shafts;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Services in structural or separating
                                                                                                                                                    elements;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Surface-finishing materials: floors,
                                                                                                                                                    walls, ceilings;
                                                                                                                                                  ▲ Lightning-protection systems and
                                                                                                                                                    fire retardants.
 Fire doors in a hospital. The intention is to protect the area of the opening the door is covering, to the same specification as the level of    PRINCIPLE 1
 protection the fire wall is intended to provide Photo credit: ArchitectProjects UK
                                                                                                                                                  Passive fire protection is provided for in
                                                                                                                                                  Part T of SANS 10400. These systems
                                                                                                                                                  form part of the building structure with
 1. INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE:                           “The passive form of the verb is               protection and its acceptability which
                                                                                                                                                  the sole purpose of minimising the
 There are two distinct approaches to               used when the grammatical subject is               will be explored here.
                                                                                                                                                  spread of fire within and beyond the
 fire-protection systems implemented in             the thing that experiences the effect of
                                                                                                                                                  building. Most of these systems are
 the built environment, namely active               an action, rather than the thing that              2. REQUIREMENTS OF PASSIVE
                                                                                                       FIRE-PROTECTION SYSTEMS:                   provided for during the construction
 and passive fire protection. This article          causes the effect.”
                                                                                                                                                  phase of the building as part of the
 will consider the acceptability of                      This implies that passive fire                Passive fire-protection requirements are
                                                                                                                                                  main structure, passive fire protection
 passive fire-protection systems.                   protection experiences the effect of a             provided for in Part T of SANS 10400.
                                                                                                                                                  in the form of, amongst other, fire walls,
                                                    fire rather than causes the effect. It is          The fundamental approach is to provide
     The term ‘passive’, according to the                                                                                                         fire stopping and the provision of fire
                                                    this response to the effect of fire which          suitable separation between rooms that
 Cambridge Dictionary, is described as                                                                                                            doors.
                                                    provides the usefulness of passive fire            may contain a fire origin in order to                                                   Passive fire-protection systems must minimise the spread of fire within and between
 the following:
                                                                                                       prevent the fire from spreading to                                                      buildings

26                                                       Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                               Fire Protection • March 2020                                                            27
INSURER
    WIND PROPERTY
         TURBINES PROTECTION GUIDE

                                                                                                                                               PRINCIPLE 4                                 Various combinations may be applied         these materials. This allows for guidance
                                                                                                                                               The fire rating of finishing materials      as informed by the heat-, smoke-,           and flexibility, as provided by SANS
                                                                                                                                               contributes in various specific ratios to   flame-, surface flame spread- and           10400, of where certain finishing
                                                                                                                                               the use of these finishing materials.       toxicological certified test results of     materials may be used or not.

 Pouring a concrete base for a firewall to form part of the new building’s passive fire-protection system

 due to radiation impingement resulting           materials of the fire door or fire wall. In       SANS 10177. Test certificates must be
 from intense heat or other effects of            other words, how long the wall or door            provided by the supplier.
 fire such as flame impingement. In               itself will resist being ignited by the fire.         The following inputs inform the fire
 other words, the door opening, as an
 example, will remain covered or
 enclosed for that specified minimum
                                                  PRINCIPLE 3
                                                  The four aspects – namely stability,
                                                                                                    rating of a finishing material: Heat
                                                                                                    index, smoke index, flame index, surface
                                                                                                    flame spread and toxic fume
                                                                                                                                                                                                         FPA FIRE COLLEGE
                                                  integrity, insulation and resistance – as
 period of time.
                                                  tested for, contribute in various specific
                                                                                                    generation.                                                                                                 Fire courses acknowledged
 Integrity. Integrity indicates the ability
 of the fire wall or fire door to remain
                                                  ratios to the fire rating or fire resistance          SANS 10400 provides tables where                                                                        for quality and professionalism
                                                  of the particular fire wall or fire door.         the above indexes are provided for
 intact for that specified minimum                                                                  floor, wall and ceiling finishes.
                                                  Various combinations may be applied,
 period of time, and not form cracks or
                                                  such as high insulation time but                      SANS 10177 has various parts
 holes through which fire can spread or                                                                                                                                                                                              COURSE BOOKINGS
                                                  average stability, etc. This allows for           which provide suitable testing standards
 warp, allowing heat to pass through.
                                                  various options for the provision of              for the above. The fire rating then                                                                                              FIRE PROTECTION
 Insulation. Insulation indicates the             suitable fire walls and fire doors as a           determines a coded serial sequence                                                                                               ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHERN
 ability of the fire wall or fire door to         functional precaution based on the                which is displayed on the underside of                                                                                           AFRICA
 resist being heated by the fire on the           actual fire load of the room(s) or                carpets used in hotel rooms, for                                                                                                 Telephone (011) 397 1618
 one side for that minimum period of              compartment(s) they enclose.                      instance. The coded sequence covers                                                                                              Fax (011) 397 1160 or (086) 647 1633
 time, until the other side of the wall or                                                          the following in this specific order:                                                                                            Satellite Tel: (011) 552-6908/9
 door reaches the same temperature as             2. SUITABILITY OF PASSIVE FIRE                        Combustibility- Non combustibility                                                                                           FPA Web page: http/www.fpasa.co.za
 that of the fire side, also known as the         PROTECTION (FIRE RATING):
                                                                                                    / Surface properties of combustible –
 thermal penetration time.                        Fire rating is provided following suitable        Non-combustible materials /
 Resistance. Resistance indicates the             testing of finishing materials in terms of        Limitations on use of materials /
 non-combustibility of the construction                                                             Application identification of materials.

28                                                      Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                            Fire Protection • March 2020                                                   29
EXHIBITIONS

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             FIRE PROTECTION
                                                                                   Midrand. It is set to take place from 2-4

 Securex 2020                                                                      June 2020.
                                                                                       “As a tradeshow that has a long-
                                                                                   standing history, it’s important that we

 all fired up with
                                                                                   continually look for ways to keep
                                                                                   Securex fresh and reflective of the
                                                                                   greater industry,” explains Sven Smit,
                                                                                   Event Director at Specialised

 introduction of
                                                                                   Exhibitions, part of the Montgomery
                                                                                   Group.

                                                                                   Firexpo will focus solely on                                                                                                                                    Premium Aluzinc ® steel

 new Firexpo                                                                       the fire and rescue sector
                                                                                   “Firexpo will focus exclusively on
                                                                                   suppliers representing the fire and
                                                                                   rescue market, a critical component not
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              fire sprinkler and hydrant tanks

                                                                                   only of security, but also within
                                                                                   facilities management and occupational

 S      ecurex South Africa, the
        continent’s leading security
 exhibition, will see visitors getting hot
                                             services, Firexpo will add a new
                                             dimension to the 27-year Securex
                                             pedigree, the organisers say.
                                                                                   health and safety (OHS).
                                                                                        “This is in keeping with our ‘2020
                                                                                   Vision’ theme for this year across the
                                                                                   three expos,” he adds. “We are
 and bothered at the 2020 show, with             Securex will be co-located with   delighted to advise that Firexpo will be
 the addition of a new sub-section,          both the A-OSH EXPO and the           supported by the Fire Detection
 namely Firexpo. Aimed at showcasing         Facilities Management Expo at         Installers’ Association (FDIA), which has
 the latest fire and rescue products and     Gallagher Convention Centre in        a long-standing reputation of providing
                                                                                                                                        The FPA Fire College
                                POS                                                representation and leadership to the
                                                                                   fire detection and gaseous                          The FPA Fire College offers a wide range of courses. Among

                                                 TPO                               extinguishing system industries for                 these are the Confederation of Fire Protection Associations
                                                                                                                                        (Europe) Diploma in Fire Prevention and the CFPA Europe

                                   unti                             NED
                                                                                   more than 20 years. It is our opinion
                                                                                                                                                   Principles of Fire Engineering course.
                                                                                   that the backing of Firexpo by the FDIA
                                                l Au
                                                                                                                                         FPASA’s Insurer Fire Impact Reduction Strategy (InFIReS)
                                                                                   cements our planned initiatives for the                 incorporates The National Fire Information Resource

                                                              gus                  introduction of the new section to the               (NatFIRe) facility to improve the collection, collation and

                                                                            t      local market.”

                                                                                   More than 10 000 people
                                                                                                                                                availability of National Fire Loss Statistics.

                                                                                   expected to attend
                                                                                   Companies operating within the fire
                                                                                   protection, prevention and detection
                                                                                   sector interested in supporting Firexpo
                                                                                   will benefit from the more than 10 000
                                                                                   visitors drawn in by the combination of
                                                                                   Securex, A-OSH EXPO and Facilities
                                                                                   Management Expo.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      accredited
                                                                                   For more information, visit
                                                                                   www.securex.co.za/, or contact Specialised                                                                                                                           Proud BBBEE
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Level 2
                                                                                   Exhibitions, part of the Montgomery Group, on                                                                                                                        Supplier
                                                                                   +27 (0) 11 835 1565.
                                                                                                                                   FIRE PROTEC TION A S SOCIATION OF SOUTHERN AFRIC A                                                                  www.rainbowtanks.co.za
                                                                                                                                         Incorporated Association not for Gain. Reg No 1973/000022/08 VAT Registration No.: 4110103100
                                                                                                                                                                 PO Box 15467 Impala Park 1472                                                           sales@rainbowres.com
                                                                                                                                   Tel: (011) 397-1618, Satellite Tel: (011) 552-6908/9, Fax: (011) 397-1160, www.fpasa.co.za                  +27 (0)11 965 6016 • +27 (0)83 226 8572

30                                                Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                                                          Fire Protection • March 2020                                     31
OUR LIBRARY

 New building fire    The rapid shift in                                                Changing climate                            NFPA 13: Water-                            NFPA 101: Life safety                        Grenfell Phase
 safety-rating system building-design                                                   for emergency                               based fire-                                in new and existing                          Two inquiry
                      materials                                                         management                                  protection systems                         structures
 Fire Risk Management                                                                                                                                                                                                       underway
 Justin Francis                             Fire Risk Management                        Fire Australia                              NFPA Journal                               NFPA Journal
 June 2019                                  Bob Glendenning                             Alana Beitz                                 Jonathan Hart                              Kristin Bigda                                    hase Two of the Grenfell Tower
 Justin Francis presents his outline of a
                                            June 2019                                   Issue 1, 2019                               Jan/Feb 2019                               May/June 2019
                                                                                                                                                                                                                            P   Inquiry into the causes of the
 new fire and safety-rating system                                                                                                                                                                                          blaze that killed 72 people and
                                            To keep pace with the rapid shift in        Fire and emergency services deal with       Understanding terminology is               Balancing the long-standing focus of
 designed for medium- and high-rise                                                                                                                                                                                         injured 70 more in June 2017 got
                                            building-design materials and               extreme weather on a daily basis. While     important when applying codes and          occupant life safety from fire events
 buildings worldwide. This article                                                                                                                                                                                          underway in London on 27 January
                                            specification, the fire-protection          fire, flood, storms and heatwaves are all   standards. Equally important is            with the growing need for security from
 outlines a Building–Fire and Life Safety                                                                                                                                                                                   2020.
                                            industry is changing. Bob Glendenning       naturally occurring hazards, climate        understanding the relationship between     non-fire related events, continues to be
 Rating (B-FLSR) system aimed at both
                                            examines the subject. Across towns and      change increases their frequency,           different codes and standards that         a common theme running through the              Broadly, Phase One sought to
 old and new medium- and high-rise
                                            cities, architects have been creating       severity and complexity – putting           apply to a single building. These two      proposed changes and technical               determine what happened on the
 buildings. The rating provides
                                            more interestingly shaped buildings,        additional stress on fire and emergency     factors are demonstrated in the            committee discussions during the first       night and its hearings concluded in
 information to occupants of the
                                            often fully glazed with the steel frame     services. The impact and flow-on effect     application and use of quick-response      stages of developing the 2021 edition        December 2018, with the report
 building on the level, type of fire, and
                                            on show. You need only look at the          of climate changes are of significant       sprinklers in health-care occupancies      of the NFPA 101 life-safety code.            published in October 2019.
 life-safety protection within the
                                            London skyline to see how these             concern for emergency personnel and         and requirements of NFPA 101 (Life         Providing guidelines for how to safety-
 building. In this way, it encourages a                                                                                                                                                                                        Phase Two’s purpose is to find
                                            stunning buildings have grown in            the communities they operate in.            safety code) and NFPA 13 (Installation     lock classroom doors in schools,
 proactive approach to building fire and                                                                                                                                                                                    out what happened, why, and what
                                            popularity and imagination in recent                                                    of sprinkler systems), as well as in the   daycare facilities and office buildings is
 life safety.                                                                                                                                                                                                               can be done to prevent it from
                                            years. This is due in part to intumescent                                               difference between the terms               a recent example of how the code has
                                            coating, which protects the steel in a
                                                                                        Choosing the right                          ‘compartment’ and ‘smoke                   addressed a specific need to balance life
                                                                                                                                                                                                                            happening again. It is not certain
                                                                                                                                                                                                                            how long Phase Two will take, but
                                            building by forming a char in the event     fixed fire protection                       compartments’.                             safety alongside fire and occupant
                                                                                                                                                                                                                            the hearings are expected to
                                            of fire.                                                                                                                           security. However, are we at a point
                                                                                        for buildings                                                                          where fire and safety drills have            conclude sometime in 2021, with
                                                                                                                                                                               become excessive? Do we risk                 the report to follow thereafter.
                                                                                        Fire Risk Management                                                                   discouraging the appropriate occupant            It is likely that the findings of
                                                                                        Gary Howe                                                                              response, thereby diminishing the value      both Phase One and Phase Two of
                                                                                                                                                                               of all drills?                               the inquiry will inform any future
                                                                                        November 2019
                                                                                        An installed automatic fixed firefighting                                                                                           legal proceedings, whether criminal
                                                                                        system is a highly effective element in                                                                                             or civil.
                                                                                        the fire-protection strategy of a                                                                                                       One of the surprising aspects of
                                                                                        building because it is immediately                                                                                                  Phase One was that changes to
                                                                                        available and is designed specifically to                                                                                           fire-safety regulations in the UK
                                                                                        meet the defined fire hazard. Selecting                                                                                             relating to building cladding– the
                                                                                        the appropriate form of fixed fire                                                                                                  primary problem in the Grenfell
                                                                                        protection for complete building                                                                                                    Tower fire – were implementing
                                                                                        protection will require the input, help                                                                                             before the Phase One findings were
                                                                                        and specialist knowledge of a                                                                                                       published.
                                                                                        competent person who will be faced
                                                                                        with the challenge of not only                                                                                                          This was because Phase One
                                                                                        satisfying the requirement of the                                                                                                   took far longer to complete than
                                                                                        current building regulations and the                                                                                                anticipated. To date there are
                                                                                        local fire authority (which are                                                                                                     already 75 000 documents that
                                                                                        predominately life-safety                                                                                                           need to be considered during Phase
                                                                                        requirements), but also the property-                                                                                               Two.
                                                                                        protection requirements of the building
                                                                                        insurer.

32                                               Fire Protection • March 2020                                                                                                       Fire Protection • March 2020                                                    33
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