- Author
- Rodden, R. M. | John, F. I. | Laurino, R.
- Title
- Exploratory Analysis of Fire Storms.
- Coporate
- Stanford Research Inst., Menlo Park, CA
- Sponsor
- Office of Civil Defense, Washington, DC
- Report
- SRI Project MU-5070, May 1965, 22 p.
- Distribution
- Available from National Technical Information Service
- Contract
- N228-62479-65419
- Keywords
- fire storms | ignition | fuel load | combustibility | topography | detonation | density effects | temperature | fire spread | thermal damage | fire fatalities | humidity
- Identifiers
- nuclear detonation; fire development
- Abstract
- This study is an evaluative review of existing knowledge and opinion relating to fire storm phenomenology. It develops interim critical values of fire storm parameters that may be used in target analyses to establish conditions for possible occurrence of fire storms. The basic factors in initiation and development of fire storms are identified and are organized into a format to serve as the framework for a fire storm model. The casualties resulting from fire storms are discussed, and a possible method for predicting fire entrapment areas is presented. It is concluded in the investigation that major parameters and concstraints affecting the initiation and development of fire storms include fuel loading, initial fire density, size of the initial fire area, surface wind, and topography and configuration.