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Abstract
The risks to firefighters and building occupants during fire suppression operations are intuitively obvious. However, little objective information about the relative effects on these risks of various fire suppression technologies is available. This study used a series of similar fires in a fire training building to compare the effects of natural ventilation (Scenario 1), positive pressure ventilation (PPV) before fire extinguishment (Scenario 2), and PPV applied after fire extinguishment (Scenario 3). Carbon monoxide concentrations were measured at five locations throughout the building. The number of 20-second intervals at which carbon monoxide levels were at or above 400 parts per million (ppm) during 10 minutes of monitoring after the temperature in the fire room reached 260°C were analyzed. The mean number of intervals of elevated carbon monoxide was 14.4 for Scenario 1, 4.9 for Scenario 2, and 16.5 for Scenario 3. The difference between Scenario 2 and the other two scenarios was significant (p = 0.017). This effect was noted at all five monitoring positions but was most significant at locations away from the fire. The use of PPV before and with fire suppression efforts may significantly reduce the duration of toxic exposure to firefighters and victims in structural fires.