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The Wildland-Urban Interface Fire Group develops, advances, and deploys measurement science to reduce risk of fire spread in wildland-urban interface (WUI) communities.
Welcome
The Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) Fire Group conducts research to reduce the risk of fire hazards in WUI communities. This research includes mission-related measurement science research and services to develop WUI fire risk exposure metrics, predict the spread of fires in WUI communities, assess the fire performance of structures and communities, and mitigate the effects of WUI fires on structures and communities through science-based codes and standards.
The WUI Fire Group accomplishes this work with the collaboration of various stakeholders, including:
Federal agencies (e.g., FEMA, USFA, USFS)
State agencies (e.g., CAL FIRE)
Codes and standards organizations (e.g., NFPA, ICC, ISO)
Fire research community (e.g., numerous academic institutions)
Highlights
Credit:
NIST
WUI FIRE DAYS The NIST WUI Fire Group hosted virtual seminar series to present recent research findings in July 2022 and in November 2023. The events provided NIST the opportunity to share current research with a large, diverse audience dedicated to protecting people and structures from WUI fires. 2023 content here – Camp Fire notification/evacuation, ESCAPE, HMM, outdoor structure separation experiment (SSE) shed burns, fire spread from woodpiles 2022 content here – HMM, indoor SSE shed burns, IBHS shed burns, SSE modeling, fire spread along fences, firebrand/ember measurement.
WUI Structure/Parcel/Community Fire Hazard Mitigation Methodology (HMM) NIST, in collaboration with CAL FIRE and IBHS, has compiled a detailed list of mitigation actions to protect structures and parcels from ember and flame exposures in WUI fires. The methodology considers spatial relationships with parcel and neighboring parcel hazards to mitigate structure-to-structure fire spread in applicable scenarios. All structures must be protected from ember ignitions – the methodology presents 40 identified ember mitigation needs. See more at the project webpage.
Credit:
NIST
ESCAPE: Evacuation and Sheltering Considerations - Assessment, Planning, and Execution The purpose of ESCAPE is to use the lessons learned from the NIST Camp Fire case study to present a methodology and other considerations about WUI fire incidents that can be used by small and intermediate-sized WUI communities to help develop notification and evacuation plans.
The ESCAPE project page is here and the ESCAPE report (NIST Technical Note 2262) can be found here.
Structure Separation Experiments NIST WUI Fire Group is leading a multi-agency collaboration investigating the safe structure separation distance of structures in the WUI. In Phase 1, dozens of sheds are being burned to measure heat release rate, flame lengths, heat flux and thermal exposure to target walls. See more at the project webpage.
Camp Fire Case Study A case study of the 2018 Camp Fire in Butte County, CA is ongoing. The findings and lessons learned from the Camp Fire can be applied to mitigate the impact of WUI fires and help at-risk communities be better prepared for a potential fire. The research team has issued two major publications to date: 1) a fire progression timeline and fire behavior findings (NIST Technical Note 2135), and 2) a detailed account of notification, evacuation, traffic, temporary refuge areas, rescues, and fatalities (NIST Technical Note 2252). See more at the project webpage.
Parcel-level Combustibles More than 200 experiments have been conducted with common detached combustibles found on residential parcels, including mulch, fencing, woodpiles, and landscape timbers. A comprehensive report is in progress. See more here.
Firebrand Measurement Development of the emberometer, a firebrand measurement device, is ongoing. Updates include system components and hardening for field/experimental usage, as well as analytical updates for ember sizing and uncertainty quantification. See more here.
With Its Dragon, NIST Aims to Reduce the Toll of Wildfires
Watch the video: With Its Dragon, NIST Aims to Reduce the Toll of Wildfires NIST's Firebrand Generator (also known as the "Dragon") produces showers of burning embers—or firebrands. Ingesting wood chips and exhaling firebrands, the novel equipment is used in research to better understand the behavior of wildfires that spread to communities.
Lessons learned from the 2018 Camp Fire in California include strategies for protecting lives when there is not enough time to safely evacuate all residents.
Once they have a foothold, severe wildfires can quickly overwhelm a community, particularly one that is densely packed. To shield houses against such a fierce
The Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) is defined as the location where structures and communities meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland. In the U.S., over
This program reduces community fire risk by 1) increasing the fire resilience of wildland-urban interface (WUI) communities and 2) enhancing the safety and
The Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) is defined as the location where structures and communities meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland. In the U.S., over
Wildland fires that spread into urban areas, termed Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) fires, are becoming more and more common across multiple locations of the
Nicolas Bouvet, Savannah Wessies, Eric Link, Stephen Fink
Firebrand showers are known for their devastating effects throughout Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) communities threatened by wildfires. In this work, we
Impacts of wildland-urban interface (WUI) fires continue to rise in the US, evidenced by the string of devastating and record-breaking events occurring since
Alexander Maranghides, Eric Link, Christopher U. Brown, William D. Walton, William Mell, Steven Hawks
The 2018 Camp Fire in Butte County, California quickly impacted the communities of Concow, Paradise, and Magalia, triggering widespread evacuation of 40000
Previous studies have shown that most structure ignitions in wildland urban-interface fires are due to firebrand deposition and ignition. The heat transfer
For development of science-based guidance on the use of evacuation elevators that enhances the safety of people with mobility impairments during fire emergencies.
For groundbreaking engineering and scientific research enabling the protection of structures and communities from the devastating effects of large-scale wildland fires.