Policy and Social Change for Healthier Designs in Building Sustainable Fire Safe Homes

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Policy and Social Change for Healthier Designs in
Building Sustainable Fire Safe Homes Princella
Lee-Bridges, MSN, RN Bridges From Augusta,
Inc. Tim Travers NFPA Regional Fire Sprinkler
Specialist
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Introduction

• The mission of NFPA (National Fire Protection
  Association), which was established in 1896, is
  to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other
  hazards on the quality of life by providing and
  advocating consensus codes and standards,
  research, training, and education
• Bridges From Augusta, Inc. assists individuals
  and families who have experienced burn injuries
  and trauma by providing education, empowerment
  and support while building community alliances.

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Objectives

• To present the collective home safety design to
  include the installation of smoke and carbon
  monoxide (CO) alarms, and the residential fire
  sprinkler system.
• To empower participants with the knowledge that
  home fire sprinklers the newest code of home
  safety save lives, reduce injury, and protect
  property and the environment

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FACTS about FIRE

• Fire deaths and injuries in one and two-family
• homes (Percentage of All Residential Fires)
• Fire deaths 84
• Fire injuries 69
• Fire property damage 83
• Fire ground firefighter deaths 83
• NFPA 2013

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Present Codes and Standards

• Smoke Alarm NFPA 72
• National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code
• Carbon Monoxide Alarm NFPA 720
• Standard for the Installation of Carbon
  Monoxide (CO) Detection and Warning Equipment
• Residential Fire Sprinklers NFPA 13D
• Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler
  Systems in One- and Two-Family Dwellings and
  Manufactured Homes

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Policy Awareness

• Smoke Alarms
• Smoke alarms have done a good job in reducing
  home fire deaths
• Weve reached a plateau/maximum benefit
• High risk groups need additional escape time
  provided by fire sprinklers

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Carbon Monoxide Alarm

• Often called the silent killer, carbon monoxide
  (CO) is an invisible, odorless, colorless gas
  created when fuels (such as gasoline, wood, coal,
  natural gas, propane, oil, and methane) burn
  incompletely.
• Carbon monoxide (CO) detection and warning
  equipment intended to protect lives by warning
  occupants of the presence of CO in sufficient
  time to allow occupants to escape or take other
  appropriate action.

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Residential Fire Sprinklers

• A historical perspective
• 1975 NFPA 13D Standard for the Installation of
  Sprinkler Systems in One- and Two-Family
  Dwellings and Manufactured Homes is first issued.
• 1996 The Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition is
  formed.
• 2005 NFPA 1 Fire Code, NFPA 101 Life Safety
  Code, and NFPA 5000 Building Construction and
  Safety Code all require fire sprinklers in all
  new one- and two-family dwellings.

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Residential Fire Sprinklers

• 2009 International Residential Code requires fire
  sprinklers in all new one- and two-family home
  construction
• 2009 NFPA launches the Home Fire Sprinkler
  Initiative Bringing Safety Home

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Residential Fire Sprinklers

• Impact of home fire sprinklers
• Death rate per fire is lower by 83
• Direct property damage is lower by 69
• Direct property damage reduced by 4.8 billion
  per year
• Firefighter injury reduction 65
• Civilian death cost reduction of 10.4 billion
  per year!

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Social Stigma about Sprinklers

• Myths
• When one activates, they all do
• They will go off when I burn toast
• They are ugly and ruin aesthetics
• They are expensive to maintain

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Social Changes

• The Facts
• Fire sprinklers respond quickly and effectively
  to the presence of a nearby fire and begin to
  spray water when activated, taking action before
  firefighters arrive. NFPA 13D home fire sprinkler
  systems are designed to provide increased escape
  time.

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Social Changes

• The Facts
• Age of housing is a poor predictor of fire death
  rates.
• New methods of construction negatively impact
  life safety under fire conditions, light weight
  construction, large open areas.
• Larger homes and todays furnishings increase
  risk.

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Social Changes

• The Real Deal
• When sprinklers are present, they save lives by
  reducing the risk of fire death and reducing
  civilian and firefighter injuries and costs.
• Fire sprinklers also reduce direct property
  damage and protect the environment by reducing
  greenhouse gases and requiring ten times less
  water than firefighters use to fight a fire.

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Design

• Fire sprinklers respond quickly and effectively
  to the presence of a nearby fire and begin to
  spray water when activated, taking action before
  firefighters arrive.
• NFPA 13D home fire sprinkler systems are designed
  to provide increased escape time. This is very
  important with the aging population and those
  with other disabilities who need additional time
  to exit the building.

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Behavior-Social-Policy

• Going forward, it is imperative to understand
  that the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are
  passive alert tools and are effective.
• The home sprinkler system is an active fire
  protection tool it sprays water until the fire
  department arrives.
• All these tools installed together in a home
  provide a reasonable level of safety to protect
  families in case of fire.

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Behavior-Social-Policy

• We have to educate the consumer to change their
  social behavior about home fire sprinklers.
• This will allow the policy to be implemented in
  new construction as it was designed - to save
  lives.

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Behavior-Social-Policy

• Now the consumer has control not the builder
  because they are educated in the importance of
  safety tools for a healthy safe home.
• The builder must understand that building homes
  meeting all national model building and fire
  codes will save live and that is priceless!

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Conclusion

• The smoke and carbon monoxide monitors have their
  role as monitors.
• Residential sprinklers are the action tool in the
  trio, they begin to spray water when activated
  beginning the fire extinguishing process.
• Together this trio as designed makes the
  healthiest safe home available to the public.

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Conclusion

• Fire sprinklers improve housing quality while
  creating healthy safe homes and sustainable
  communities in the generation of lightweight
  construction and synthetic contents.

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Reference List

• NFPAs Characteristics of Home Fire Victims,
  Jennifer D. Flynn, March 2010.
• NFPAs Home Structure Fire Loss in the U.S. and
  Fire Sprinkler Impact, John R. Hall, Jr et al,
  October 2012.
• NFPAs US Experience with Sprinklers, Dr. John
  Hall, Jr., June 2013.
• NFPAs Fire Loss in the United States During
  2012, Michael J. Karter Jr., September 2013.
• Structural Stability of Engineered Lumber in Fire
  Conditions, Underwriter Laboratories (UL), July
  2008.
• The Environmental Impact of Automatic Fire
  Sprinklers, HFSC/FM Global, March 2010.