National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)'s Blog, page 46

NFPA Addresses Building Under Construction Fires with New Fire Prevention Program Manager Online Training and Webinar Panel on April 15

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) launched a new Fire Prevention Program Manager Online Training Series today to help the building industry understand and adopt the strategies defined in NFPA 241 Standard for Safeguarding Construction, Alteration, and Demolition Operation. The topic will also be discussed by a panel of industry experts during an Addressing Fire Safety Challenges...



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NVFC Facebook Live Event to Help Fire Departments Engage with Communities for Wildfire Prep Day

Spring is upon us and so is the start of wildfire season in many parts of the country. With Wildfire Community Preparedness Day (Prep Day) a little less than a month away on Saturday, May 1, there’s lots of things individuals and communities can be doing to reduce their risk.
To help fire departments prepare for Prep Day, the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) is hosting a Facebook Live event...



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Research Foundation webinar on “Fire Safety Challenges of ‘Green’ Buildings and Attributes”

In 2012, the Fire Protection Research Foundation (FPRF) published a literature review related to fire safety challenges of ‘green’ (sustainable) building materials, systems (technologies) and features. The aim of that work was to:

identify documented fire incidents in ‘green’ buildings
define a specific set of elements in ‘green’ building design, including configuration and materials,...



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Fire Pump Types

Above credit: Hydraulics Institute
Fire pumps are an essential part of many water-based fire protection systems. They are used to increase the pressure (measured in psi and bar) of a water source when that source is not adequate for the system it’s supplying. These are commonly found in buildings that tend to have a high-pressure demand such as high-rises or storage warehouses. This blog...



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Research Foundation Request for Proposal – How Does Medication Impact an Older Adult When It Comes to Falls and Fire Risks?

The NFPA Remembering When™ program is a fire and fall prevention program for older adults developed by NFPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This program is designed to help older adults live safely at home as long as possible. There are sixteen key messages, eight related to fire prevention and eight related to fall prevention. 
To support the NFPA Remembering When™...



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NFPA Launches Free Structural Firefighting Online Training Based on the Fire Dynamics within NFPA 1700

NFPA released free NFPA® 1700 Guide for Structural Fire Fighting online training for firefighters to learn safer and more effective ways to handle fire incidents involving modern day materials and contents. The all-new online instructional course, centered around NFPA 1700 Guide for Structural Fire Fighting, is based on extensive scientific research and testing on contemporary structures from the...



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NIOSH releases fact sheet on odorant fade

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, or NIOSH, released a fact sheet on odorant fade in natural gas and propane, an important issue that requires firefighters to be aware of it so they can operate safely around natural gas and propane.
Odorant is a liquid added to natural gas and propane that releases a smell in case of a leak. The smell alerts anyone nearby about a leak...



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Research Foundation webinar recording on “Combustible Gas Dispersion and Detector Location Analysis in Residential Occupancies” is now available

There have been a handful of fuel gas explosions in the last five years including incidents that occurred in three rowhouses in northwest Baltimore in Aug 2020, in the Merrimack region of Massachusetts in 2018, and in Silver Spring Maryland in 2016. Listed fuel gas detectors and alarms exist, but there is no installation standard. Firm requirements are needed for installation of fuel gas...



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Sprinkler System Basics: Types of Sprinkler Systems

When designing a sprinkler system one of the first decisions a designer has to make is what type of sprinkler system should be installed. Types of sprinkler systems permissible by NFPA 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems, are wet, dry, preaction, and deluge. Other types of extinguishing systems, such as clean agent or water mist, are addressed by other standards. When selecting...



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Protecting Electrical Workers on Building Under Construction Sites

Electrical safety on construction sites is a topic that is being talked about more and more these days. So when I was asked to write about it, the safety nerd in me immediately started rattling off OSHA 1926 standards and quoting NFPA 70E requirements in my head. Then I remembered back to the days when I was probably more at home in a building under construction than I was in my own living room....



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