- Author
-
Ahrens, M.
- Title
- U.S. Vehicle Fire Trends and Patterns.
- Coporate
- National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, MA
- Report
-
NFPA No. USS27,
June 2010,
87 p.
- Keywords
-
fire statistics
|
motor vehicles
|
highways
|
automobile fires
|
trucks
|
buses
|
death
|
damage
|
injuries
- Identifiers
- motocycles; vehicle fires fact sheet; overview of the vehicle fire problem; highway vehicle fires; preventing vehicle fires
- Abstract
- A complete overview of vehicle fire patterns and trends and the U.S. highway vehicle fire problem. Includes trend tables, type of vehicle, time of day, month of year, day of week, heat source, area of origin, item first ignited and more. Abstract: In 2003-2007, U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 287,000 vehicle fires per year. These fires caused an average of 480 civilian deaths, 1,525 civilian injuries, and $1.3 billion in direct property damage annually. Cars, trucks and other highway vehicles (meaning a vehicle designed for highway use, not that the fire occurred on a highway) accounted for 93% of the vehicle fires and 92% of the vehicle fire deaths. Data from the U.S. Fire Administration's (USFA's) National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) and the National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA's) annual fire department experience survey are used to provide details about the types of vehicles involved in fire and the circumstances of highway vehicle fires. Mechanical or electrical failures caused roughly three-quarters of the highway vehicle fires, but only 11% of the deaths. Collisions and overturns were factors contributing to the ignition in only 3% of the fires, but fires resulting from these incidents caused 58% of these vehicle fire deaths. Older teens and young adults are the age groups at highest risk of highway vehicle fire death and injuries. One-third (35%) of non-fatal highway vehicle fires injuries occurred when civilians attempted to fight the fire themselves.