- Author
-
Isner, M. S.
|
Klem, T. J.
- Title
- World Trade Center Explosion and Fire, New York, New York, February 26, 1993. Fire Investigation Report.
- Coporate
- National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, MA
- Report
-
Fire Investigation Report,
1993,
72 p.
- Keywords
-
fire investigations
|
building fires
|
high rise buildings
|
explosions
|
death
|
smoke
|
evacuation
|
stairways
|
injuries
|
office buildings
|
fire protection
|
garages
|
egress
|
smoke movement
|
electrical power
|
occupants
|
terrorists
|
terrorism
|
World Trade Center
- Abstract
- On Friday, February 26, 1993, a violent explosion ripped through a parking garage in the sub-basement levels of New York's World Trade Center complex, immediately killing six people. The explosion caused extensive damage in several basement levels and resulted in an intense fire that quickly distributed thick, black smoke to the upper levels of many of the complex's seven buildings, causing a massive evacuation. The explosion also disabled much of the fire protection systems within the complex, including the fire alarm communication system for the "Twin Towers," leaving evacuating occupants without emergency instructions during their prolonged escape. Many of the approximately 150,000 occupants within the complex were confronted with dense smoke on occupied floors and then in stairways as they began reaching the lower levels of the buildings. Further, the smoke-filled stairways were immersed in darkness when both the normal and emergency electrical power were interrupted. More than 1,000 people were injured during the evacuation of the complex, most suffering from the effects of smoke exposure. Unlike most fatal fire scenarios, however, there were no fatalities attributed to the effects of smoke despite the severe exposure to products of combustion and the lengthy evacuation time.