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Displaying 26 - 50 of 128

Perspectives of Occupants with Mobility Impairments on Fire Evacuation and Elevators

August 15, 2016
Author(s)
Kathryn M. Butler, Susanne M. Furman, Erica D. Kuligowski, Richard D. Peacock
The purpose of this report is to provide guidance for designers, building managers, and fire emergency personnel on how to improve communication, procedures, and elevator usage during fire emergencies, based on a study of the evacuation experiences of

Pros and Cons of Egress Drills

July 4, 2016
Author(s)
Steve Gwynne, Karen E. Boyce, Erica D. Kuligowski, Daniel Nilsson, Amanda Robbins, Ruggiero Lovreglio
This article explores how egress drills are currently employed, their impact, and the insights gained from them. By investigating their strengths and limitations, this article suggests opportunities for enhancement through the use of other egress models to

Movement on Stairs During Building Evacuations

June 8, 2016
Author(s)
Richard D. Peacock, Paul A. Reneke, Erica D. Kuligowski, Robert C. Hagwood
The time that it takes an occupant population to reach safety when descending a stair during building evacuations is typically estimated by measureable engineering variables such as stair geometry, speed, stair density, and pre-observation delay. In turn

Guidance for the Model User on Representing Human Behavior in Egress Models

May 24, 2016
Author(s)
Erica D. Kuligowski, Steve Gwynne, Michael Kinsey, Lynn Hulse
Structures are currently designed and constructed in accordance with prescriptive and performance-based (PBD) methodologies to ensure a certain level of safety. The performance-based approach requires the quantification of both ASET (Available Safe Egress

Human Response to and Consequences of the May 22, 2011, Joplin Tornado

May 15, 2016
Author(s)
Erica D. Kuligowski, Frank Lombardo, Long T. Phan
Tornadoes wreak havoc and destruction across the United States every year. One such tornado occurred in Joplin, Missouri on May 22, 2011. This tornado killed 161 people, damaged nearly 8,000 structures and caused billions of dollars in damage. This chapter

Computer Evacuation Models for Buildings

November 9, 2015
Author(s)
Erica D. Kuligowski
N/A for SFPE Handbook Chapters. Included here is text from the chapter introduction: "With the rapid increase in computer capability and the increase in egress model development, there is a need for guidance on evacuation modeling, specifically the process

Fire Evacuation of People with Mobility Impairments Using Elevators

September 28, 2015
Author(s)
Kathryn M. Butler, Susanne M. Furman, Erica D. Kuligowski
The Final Report on the collapse of the World Trade Center (WTC) Towers recommended that tall buildings be designed for timely full-building evacuations from both building-specific and large-scale events. Since the WTC study, several project efforts have

HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN FIRE - MODEL DEVELOPMENT AND APPLICATION

September 28, 2015
Author(s)
Steve Gwynne, Erica D. Kuligowski, Michael Kinsey
The purpose of this article is to introduce a conceptual model of human behaviour in fire. This model is constructed based upon a theoretical framework of individual decision-making and response to emergencies, and from this foundation, is populated with

A Review of Risk Perception in Building Fire Evacuation

October 1, 2014
Author(s)
Max T. Kinateder, Erica D. Kuligowski, Paul A. Reneke, Richard Peacock
Risk perception (RP) is studied in many research disciplines (e.g., safety engineering, psychology, or sociology), and the contexts surrounding the ways in which different concepts of RP are applied vary greatly. Definitions of RP can be broadly divided

A Review of Risk Perception in Building Fire Evacuation

September 25, 2014
Author(s)
Max Kinateder, Erica D. Kuligowski, Paul A. Reneke, Richard Peacock
Risk perception (RP) is studied in many research disciplines (e.g., safety engineering, psychology, and sociology), and the context in which RP is studied varies greatly. Definitions of RP can be broadly divided into expectancy- value and risk-as-feeling

Movement on Stairs During Building Evacuations

September 25, 2014
Author(s)
Erica D. Kuligowski, Richard Peacock, Paul A. Reneke, Emily A. Wiess, Jason D. Averill, Robert Hagwood, Enrico Ronchi, Bryan Hoskins, Michael Spearpoint
The time that it takes an occupant population to reach safety when descending a stairwell during building evacuations is typically described by measureable engineering variables such as stairwell geometry, speed, density, and pre-evacuation delay. In turn

Assessing the Verification and Validation of Building Fire Evacuation Models

September 19, 2014
Author(s)
Enrico Ronchi, Erica D. Kuligowski, Daniel Nilsson, Richard Peacock, Paul A. Reneke
To date there is no International standard on the verification and validation (V&V) of building fire evacuation models, i.e., model testers adopt inconsistent procedures or tests designed for other model uses. For instance, the tests presented within the

The Use of Elevators for Evacuation in Fire Emergencies in International Buildings

July 21, 2014
Author(s)
Max T. Kinateder, Hidemi Omori, Erica D. Kuligowski
The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of elevator evacuation from high-rise buildings with a focus on the safety of mobility impaired occupants. It addresses the specifics of elevator evacuation as well as relevant building codes and its

Final Report, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Technical Investigation of the May 22, 2011, Tornado in Joplin, Missouri

March 26, 2014
Author(s)
Erica D. Kuligowski, Franklin T. Lombardo, Long Phan, Marc L. Levitan, David P. Jorgensen
This is the final report of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) investigation of the May 22, 2011 tornado in Joplin, Missouri, conducted under the National Construction Safety Team Act. This report describes the wind field of the

Guidance Document: Emergency Communication Strategies for Buildings

March 3, 2014
Author(s)
Erica D. Kuligowski
The purpose of this report is to provide guidance to system designers, building managers and/or building emergency personnel responsible for emergency communication on how to create and disseminate messages using basic communication modes (audible and/or

Stair Evacuation of People with Mobility Impairments

March 3, 2014
Author(s)
Erica D. Kuligowski, Richard Peacock, Bryan Hoskins, Emily Wiess
The time that it takes a population to reach safety when descending a stairwell during building evacuations is typically described by measureable engineering variables. These engineering variables include stairwell geometry, speed, density, and pre