Fire Management of

High Rise Buildings

(A Case Study of Delhi Area)

Dr. Neelam G. TIkkha

Book title: Fire Management of High Rise Buildings

(A Case Study of Delhi Area)

Author : Dr. Neelam G. TIkkha

ISBN -81-86067-12-4

Copyright @CFI 2013. Publishers: CF International, D903,Sarthak Tower , Ramdeo Cross

Road Satellite Road , Ahmadabad - 380015.

All legal Jurisdiction Nagpur.

Price INR 950/-

Face – to Face

Disasters due to their scale and extent are devastating calamities. The disaster

aftermath is always sordid picture of large-scale loss of life property as well

as severe shortages of relief material and medical aid. While disasters appear

and sound horrific when they actually strike, the factors that are responsible

for occurrence of disasters are generally side lined. The dying infrastructure,

growing pressures of population growth, denuded forests, degraded

environment, faulty urban planning, non adherence to building codes and

land use zones are all symptomatic of a callous and short term approach to

development which has intensified the fury of disasters.

Among all disasters, building fires are perhaps the most commonplace but

take a disproportionately large toll of lives and property. It is said that fire

is a good servant but a bad master and once out of control spares none.

Furthermore, fire loss is an absolute loss because what burns never returns.

Most of the fires that take place are because of the neglect of norms and

illegal development. It is believed that,” Vikas aisa ho jo aafat se bachaya

, vikas aisa na ho jo aafat ban jaaye”. It is also true that disaster

management leads to new opportunities for development in a bid to avoid

future calamities.

While enormous amount of money is being spent on disaster aftermath, not

even a fraction of this goes toward disaster preparedness. The funds are

diverted towards response and reconstruction rather than disaster mitigation

and preparation.

This book deals with nature of fire and response to fire in high rise buildings.

For this as an illustration high rise buildings of Delhi area are considered.

Author

Dr. Neelam Tikkha

Founder Director and Editor ,

CFTRA- Global

(An international Platform for learning for Academicians

& Scholars)

Dedication

The book Fire Management of High Rise Buildings – A Case Study

of Delhi Area has been dedicated to My parents, my brothers Nishith

Tikkha and Dr. Abhijeet Tikkha, my daughter Ishita , Mr. Shamim, Director,

National Fire Service College, Nagpur, who motivated me to write this book.

Mr. Narendra Modi, Chief Minister of Gujarat, who has been a great source

of inspiration and motivation

Special thanks to Mr. SK Sharma, Delhi Fire Service, without whose help

the work could not be completed.

CONTENTS

Chapter - I Introduction 01

Chapter – II The Science of Fire 04

Chapter – III High Rise Buildings and Fire Zones 07

Chapter – IV GIS Technology and Applications

for the Fire Service 12

Chapter – V Case Studies: Major Fires in Delhi 17

Chapter - VI Famous Case Studies

Inter National Case Studies 29

Chapter VII Conclusion 36

Bibliography 39

1

Fire Management of High Rise Buildings

A Case Study of Delhi Area

Chapter - I

Introduction

Fire is an integral part of our lives. There are few things that have done as much harm to humanity

as fire, and few things that have done as much good. It is certainly one of the most important forces

in human history. It is a boon without which life would be difficult. Fire is extraordinarily helpful.

It has given humans the first form of portable light and heat. It has also given the ability to cook

food, forge metal tools, form pottery, harden bricks and drive power plants. Fire can be very

useful if it is in our control but if it goes unleashed can create tremendous damage to all living human

being, property and nature. We find some common hazards that take place because of fire. The

most common ones in the household are due to gas leakage, careless in throwing of cigarette and

bidi butts, crude heaters used in winter viz sigri’s or kangdi’s used in Kasmir , or short circuit due

to poor electric wire quality and more recently fire taking place because of malfunctioning of Air

conditioner and bursting of Chinese made cell phone batteries.

A number of fire prone public places are train bogies, cinema theatre, malls, car accidents (rare

kind) and Air crashes of Airplanes.

This study aims to study fire in High rise building and measures to mitigate fire.

Nature of Fire:

There are three essential components of Fire – Oxygen, Fuel, and Ignition temperature to start.

If anyone is removed the fire will not start or continue. Refer to figure of Triangle of Fire :

Fire can never take place if one of the elements is removed from the triangle of fire as seen in figure

2 below in the Triangle of fire to Put it Off.

The nature of fire can be very well understood from the mundane household examples like matchstick.

It is surprising that to ignite a matchstick ignition temperature required is 4000 C. The cigarettes

of butts to continue to burn requirement will be 4600C. The two examples are of controlled fire

but if it is not controlled and one gets careless it can change to unleashed fire causing damage to

human life and property.

Kinds of Fire:

There are three kinds of fire depending on the size of the fire: small, medium and huge. The third

kind is very serious, dangerous and devastating and requires great effort to control it.

Any fire is associated with Smoke and Heat. The Smoke rises very fast. It takes seconds for

smoke to rise whereas temperature or heat increases in minutes. Smoke is more dangerous than

Heat. Loss due to Fires are on the increase day by day due to combustible materials used in

buildings constructions and handling of flammable materials. The fire when comes in contact with

atmospheric oxygen occupies a mammoth size emitting great heat and light.

2

The front part of flame is a transition region that separates burnt gases from the un burnt gases.

The light that we see is given out from this region. The fuel when combines with atmospheric

oxygen leads to its oxidation which liberates enough energy on combustion and spreads the flame

vertically and horizontally . The non ignited region of the mixture is called “flammable” since gradually

it will also turn into flame.

Flame: A flame is a mixture of reacting gases and solids emitting visible and infrared light, the

frequency spectrum of which depends on the chemical composition of the burning material and

intermediate reaction of the products. In many cases, such as the burning of organic matter, for

example wood, or the complete combustion of gas, incandescent solid particles called soot.

It has long been recognized that exposure to toxic smoke products is one of the major hazard

confronting people in fires. Toxic chemical substances produced during fire results in the contamination

of environment, injuries to human beings and animals which may lead to loss of life. The buildings

may also get corroded and contaminated.

It has been observed in experimental studies on compartment fire that the fire smoke contains a

number of potentially toxic gases. Their quantity considerably depends upon the temperature and

oxygen supply to the compartment. Toxic gases are composed of asphyxiating gases such as

Carbon monoxide, Carbon dioxide that cause deficiency of Oxygen available for breathing. There

are certain other chemical gases that have been added because of modern synthetic materials like

hydrogen cyanide gases and irritants like acrolein and hydrogen chloride acid gas. The asphyxiating

gases and irritants, singly or in combination lead to difficulty in breathing which causes suffocation

and ultimately death of the person trapped in fire. Carbon monoxide (CO) is the most common

fire toxicant. More than half of the fire fatalities occur due to its inhalation. The exposure of one

hour to the Carbon monoxide concentrations as low as 4000 ppm (0.4% by volume) can be fatal.

The different levels of Carbon monoxide has been found in different percentage in full scale

compartment fires. A complete toxicity assessment should not only include the analysis of toxicity

of CO but also the synergistic effects of other combustion products such as increase in CO2 and

deficiency in O2 levels.

Now a day, there is tremendous increase in injuries and casualties due to smoke and toxic fumes.

It is probably due to:

1) The massive use of synthetic material like fiber in furniture and furnishings and upholstery

in buildings. These materials generate combustible products, which are toxic even in very

low concentration.

2) The rate of combustion is comparatively low of fire in the traditional materials such as

wood, brick and mortar than modern combustibles that are used in modern world.

It has become essential to mitigate toxic hazards in Fires to control modern day fire which is

caused because of the widespread use of synthetic modern material. Hence factors such as ignition,

spread of flame, and rate of smoke evolution need to be checked with more care and caution.

Significance of the Study: Fire service comes in the category of emergency services and plays

an important role in disaster preparedness and fire defense control. The study would highlight how

effectively Fire services perform the role of the fire department in disaster control side by side it

is consistent with its traditional role in the suppression of fire.

Although the fire department more commonly is perceived as a fire suppression and fire protection

3

force, it is nonetheless the logical organization to respond to other disasters as well. Many similarities

exist among disasters, fire situations, and other emergency responses of the fire department. In any

community the fire department is poised and ready to swing into immediate action at the sound

of an alarm. Its continual readiness makes it a logical organization to respond to emergencies other

than fires. It tackles two issues effectively:

Consequences of fire after outbreak (Postmortem of Fire).

Role of surveillance (Reason of Fire and take action) activities for early detection of fire outbreaks.

Objectives: To study the nature of fire and fuel so as to be prepared and limit disaster, by fire.

As case study high rise building in Delhi area would be considered.

Methodology & Data Source Collection

Fire department plays a vital role in preparing and responding a community to a disaster and

emergency situation. An effective planning can save valuable lives of people, and can promote the

culture of prevention and mitigation through various activities. Now with the paradigm shift in the

approach towards disaster, proactive approaches are gaining ground and more emphasis is being

laid on pre-disaster activities, rather than response and rehabilitation.

Methodology for data collection include visit to Delhi Fire Service to collect details of the actual

fires in high rise buildings that have taken place in Delhi area. An extensive study of literature that

is available on the website and blogs are referred. Reports of various fire departments in Nagpur,

Goa and Karnataka have been referred. NGO’s survey reports have also been studied in detail.

Lectures at JNU on Disaster Management refresher course has also been considered for this

study. Various techniques of Disaster preparedness in a workshop by Mr. S.K. Sharma, Fire

officer Delhi Fire services at Confidence Spoken English Institute, Nagpur on 9thMarch, 2013

and workshop at National Civil Defense College Nagpur was useful in this study.

Data Source: Data was collected from internet, journals, publications, research papers, newspapers,

departmental reports, libraries, official records of various agencies (like National Disaster

Management Authority (NDMA), Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), National Institute of

Disaster Management (NIDM), National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA). Consultations with

experts in the field of mental health, GIS, school administration, fire service were also carried out.

Chapter Scheme: The first chapter of this book is Introduction, the second Chapter is Science

of Fire and would deal with nature of fire and fuel. Chapter three deals with parameters that

determine a building to be considered as High Rise Building and would also deal with Fire zones.It

would be titled High Rise Buildings and Fire Zones

Chapter four is titled GIS Technology and Applications for the Fire Service. Chapter five would

deal with major fires in Delhi city and requirements of preparedness and action by fire service

department . It would be titled : Case Studies: Major Fires in Delhi

Sixth chapter would deal with famous Case studies. It would be titled : Famous Case Studies

-Inter National Case Studies. Last Chapter would be Conclusion followed by references and

Bibliography.

The time frame for data collection would be one month and one month for report writing.

Conclusion: It is very important to study the types of fire and different types of fuels to understand

to meter out fire, to control and to make it potable for maximum use of human beings advantage.

Step-1

Step2

4

Chapter – II

The Science of Fire

It is very important to understand the nature of fire to make fire our slaves rather than becoming

its slaves. Fire can destroy houses and all possessions in less than an hour, and it can reduce an

entire forest to a pile of ash and charred wood. It is also a horrifying weapon, with nearly unlimited

destructive power. Fire kills more people every year than any other force of nature.

The ancient Greeks considered fire one of the major elements in the universe alongside water,

earth and air. This grouping was intuitively sensible: Fire can be felt, just like earth, water and air.

It can be seen and smelled and can be moved from one place to another. But, fire is absolutely

different. Earth, water and air are all forms of matter — they are made up of millions and millions

of atoms collected together. Fire cannot be considered a matter at all. It’s a visible, tangible side

effect of matter changing form – it is one part of a chemical reaction.

What exactly are those orange flames? Rolfo Rolf Brenner/Getty Images

The heat can come from lots of different things – When the wood gets heated to a very high

temperature, from any source like -a match, focused light, friction, lightening, or something else

that is already burning. When the wood reaches about 300 degrees Fahrenheit (150 degrees

Celsius), the heat decomposes some of the cellulose material that makes up the wood. Some of

the decomposed material is released as volatile gases (commonly perceived as smoke).Smoke is

a compound of hydrogen, carbon and oxygen. The rest of the material forms char, which is nearly

pure carbon, and ash, which is all of the unburnable minerals in the wood (calcium, potassium,

and so on). The char is nothing else but the coal or the charcoal. Charcoal is wood that has been

heated to remove nearly all of the volatile gases and leave behind the carbon. Hence, a charcoal

fire burns with no smoke.

The actual burning of wood then happens in two separate reactions: Refer Plate: 4

The volatile gases get hot enough and when reach about 500 degrees F (260 degrees C for

wood), the compound molecules break apart, and the atoms recombine with the oxygen to form

water, carbon dioxide and other products. In other words, they burn.

The carbon in the char combines with oxygen as well, and this is a much slower reaction. That

is why charcoal in a BBQ (Barbecue) can stay hot for a long time.

A side effect of these chemical reactions is generation of a lot of heat. The fact that the chemical

reactions in a fire generate a lot of new heat is what sustains the fire. A number of fuel burn in one

step for example, Gasoline which is vaporized by gasoline and it all burns as a volatile gas and

leaves no char. Human being learned to meter out the fuel and control a fire for example; a candle is

a tool for slowly vaporizing and burning wax.

This “heat produces light” effect is called incandescence, and it is the similar to the light in a light

bulb and leads to the visible flame. The color of the flame varies depending on what fuel is burning

and how hot it is. Color variation within in a flame is caused by uneven temperature. The hottest

part of a flame is the base and it glows blue, and the cooler parts at the top glow orange or yellow.

The rising carbon particles may collect on surrounding surfaces as soot in addition to emitting light.

Refer Plate: 5

5

The dangerous thing about the chemical reactions in fire is the fact that they are self-perpetuating.

The heat of the flame itself keeps the fuel at the ignition temperature, so it continues to burn as

long as there is fuel and oxygen around it. The flame heats any surrounding fuel so it releases gases

as well. When the flame ignites the gases, the fire spreads.

On Earth, gravity determines how the flame burns. All the hot gases in the flame are much hotter

(and less dense) than the surrounding air, so they move upward toward lower pressure. The fire

always spreads upward, and it is also why flames are always “pointed” at the top. If fire was to

be lighted in a microgravity environment, say onboard the space shuttle, it would form a sphere!

Plate : 6

Ignition Sources: There are two kinds of ignition sources viz. high energy ignition and low energy

ignition source. Fire retardant materials are being used to retard the speed of ignition when a

material is exposed to a low-energy ignition source. A material may burn slowly or self-extinguish

but does have capacity to burn in full fledge if exposed to high energy ignition source. The most

common example is that of the matchstick which when comes in contact with domestic gas burns

vibrantly. Similarly, any compartment fire also would vigorously develop when it comes in contact

with high energy ignition source. Another. Valid common example is plywood which exhibits the

ability to self-extinguish when exposed to a match flame, but it burns vigorously when exposed

to a larger ignition source.

Fire-retardant materials should not be confused with non-combustible materials. Fire retardants

may inhibit ignition, but, once ignited, a material treated with fire retardant may produce more

smoke and noxious gases. Fire retardant additives may lose their potency, be washed out, or

leached out over time, an attribute that is particularly true of lumber impregnated with fire-retardant

additive. The fire retardant wears out as the material ages and is exposed to the atmosphere.

Manufacturers usually provide instructions for the care and cleaning of fire-treated materials to

prolong the effectiveness of the fire retardant.

Heat and Ignition Source:

Heat required for ignition may come from several common sources. Any source of heat has the

potential to be a source of ignition. Ignition sources should not, however, be confused with causes

of fire. Frayed electrical wiring, a discarded cigarette butt, or a welder’s torch may be the source

of ignition, but the root cause of most fires is people. Most fire prevention efforts are aimed at

controlling the actions of the people responsible for controlling common sources of ignition. Heat

sources can be classified as electrical, chemical, or nuclear.

Electrical Heat Sources

Electric energy can be an ignition source in several ways, including electric resistance heating, short

circuiting in electrical wiring, induction, and electrical arcing.

Electrical Resistance Heating

Electric resistance heating is a common method of providing heat for a number of different processes.

As electric current passes through a conductor, a natural resistance to the flow of the electric

current occurs. This resistance to the flow of electric current generates heat and the amount of heat

generated depends on the conductivity of the material and the amount of current it carries. A

decrease in conductivity or an increase in current increases the heating.

6

Resistance heating has the capacity to easily create enough heat to ignite the insulation on wiring

or cables and to ignite nearby combustibles substance through radiant heating or direct contact.

Most hair dryers, for example, create heat through the use of the small resistance-heating coil.

Forced convention by way of a small fan is used to transfer much of the heat from the coil to the

air discharging from the nozzle on the hair dryer.

Short Circuit

A short circuit in electrical wiring can generate sufficient heat to ignite insulation or other combustible

material in contact with the wiring. Improperly, installed and poorly maintained electrical wiring and

appliances are the cause of many fires.

Induction

Electrical energy can also create heat through induction. Placing an electrical conductor close to

the field generated by a large electric current flowing in another conductor or set of conductors

causes an electric current to be induced in the conductor. This method of heating is used in some

types of commercial heat-treating furnaces.

Electrical Arcing, Arc flash and Arc faults: All of these can be defined as an uncontrolled

intense luminous discharge of electrical energy that occurs when electric current flows across an

insulating medium. In other words “arcing” occurs when electric current flows uncontrolled

accompanied by ionization of the surrounding air from phase to ground, phase to neutral, and/or

phase to phase. The intense light and heat energy at the point of the arc is called an “arc flash”.

An ARC builds up in milliseconds and releases a vast amount of energy.

Broad Classification Of Fire : Fire can be classified in four different types ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’

as shown in the table below:

Refer Plate 8

Types Of Fuel: Type of fire will determine the kind of fuel to be used to extinguish and it can

be very hazardous if wrong type of fuel is used. It is therefore essential to understand the four

different classifications of fuel.

Classification of Fuels

Refer Plate 9

D type of Fire can only be controlled by special extinguishing agents (Metal-X, foam) and such

fire takes place in industries and laboratory.

The in depth understanding of fire and fuel type helps in limiting fire and builds safety measures

to keep fire in check and avoid fire hazards.

 Tom Harris, How Fire Works, http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/earth/geophysics/fire1.htm

http://www.sc.edu/ehs/modules/Fire/02_fuels.htm , Downloaded on 3rd May,2013.)

7

Chapter – III

High Rise Buildings and Fire Zones

A number of high rise buildings are coming up because of the reduction in geographical space,

increase in the number of population and Globalization. A number of industries and organization

are being set up as part of Globalization movement. The safety of high rise building is a matter of

great concern since if there is any lapse in the fire safety measures of such buildings then there could

be major mishap which may lead to a number of deaths of the occupant and of the neighboring

areas will along with property.

Definition of High Rise Building:

Any building in Delhi which is above 15 meter but in Mumbai the building would qualify as high

rise building if it is above 22 meter height of the building will be high rise building in Mumbai in

Maharashtra.

Reasons of Susceptibility of Fire in High Rise Buildings: The high rise buildings catch fire

mostly due to the negligence due to following reasons:

Smoking – 25%, Electric short-circuit – 35%, cooking gas – 25%, chemical reaction - 10% and

5% are other miscellaneous reasons.

It has become mandatory to have fire safety provisions for the safety of life and safety of the

property, vide “Fire Safety Act of Delhi 2007”. The building must be fully equipped with both

active and passive in-built systems of fire prevention and fire protection. The building will be thoroughly

examined for various essential parameters by an expert in fire force.

A series of Indian Standards covering fire safety of buildings in general principles of fire grading

details of construction, exit requirements and exposure hazards have been formulated. This Indian

Standard covers general principles of fire grading and classification, which has been adopted in

various Indian standards in respect to fire safety aspects. This standard was first issued in 1960.

Based on considerable research done on field of fire protection in the past 25 years in advanced

countries like USA, UK and Canada, the method of classification of building has been revised and

covered in this revision.

Number and Designation of Fire Zones: Every city is divided into fire zones.

The number of fire zones in a city or area under the jurisdiction of the fire authority depends upon

the existing layout, types of building construction, classification of existing buildings based on

occupancy and expected future development of the city or area. In large cities or areas, three fire

zones may be necessary, while in smaller ones, one or two may be adequate. The fire zones help

in demarcating land use development plan and shall be designated as follows:

a) Fire Zone No.1:This shall comprise areas having residential (Group A), educational (Group

B), institutional (Group C), and assembly (Group D), small business (Subdivisions E-I) and retail

mercantile (Group F) buildings, or areas which are under development for such occupancies.

b) Fire Zone No.2: This shall comprise business (Subdivisions B-2 to E-5) and industrial

buildings (Subdivisions G-1 and G-2), except high hazard industrial buildings (Sub-division G-3)

or areas which are under development for such occupancies.

8

c) Fire Zone No.3 : This shall, comprise areas having high hazard industrial buildings (Sub-

division G-3), storage buildings (Group H) and buildings for hazardous used (Group J) or areas

which are under development for such occupancies.

Background and objectives of the Fire Prevention & Life Safety:

The main protection and active measures in respect of Fire Prevention & Life Safety measures

are as under:

a) Fire Prevention – Covering aspects of fire prevention pertaining to design and construction

of buildings on passive fire protection measures, also describing the various types of building

materials and their fire rating.

b) Life Safety – Covering life safety provisions in the event of fire and similar emergencies,

also addressing construction and occupancy features that are necessary to minimize danger

to life from fire, smoke, fumes or panic.

c) Fire Protection – covering the significant appurtenances and their related components and

guidelines for selecting the correct type of equipment and installation meant for fire protection

of the building, depending upon the classification and type of the building.

Classification of Building based on Occupancy

Group ‘A’ – Residential Buildings

Buildings and structures under Group A shall be further sub-divided as follows:

Sub-division A-1 Lodging or rooming houses

Sub-division A-2 One or two Family private dwellings

Sub-division A-3 Dormitories

Sub-division A-4 Apartment houses (Flats)

Sub-division A-5 Hotels

Sub-division A-6 Hotels (Starred)

Group ‘B’ – Educational Buildings

These shall include any building used for school, college, other training institutions for day-care

purpose involving assembly for instruction, education or recreation for not less than 20 students.

Buildings and structures under Group B shall be further sub-divided as follows:

Sub-division B-1 Schools upto senior secondary level

Sub-division B-2 All others/ training institutions

a) Sub-division B-1 Schools up to senior secondary level – This sub-division shall include

any building or a group of buildings under single management which is used for students

not less than 20 in number.

b) Sub-division B-2 All others/ training institutions – This sub-division shall include any building

or a group of buildings under single management which is used for students not less than

100 in number.

Group ‘C’ – Institution Buildings

These shall include any building or part thereof, which is used for purposes, such as medical or

other treatment or care of persons suffering from physical or mental illness, disease or infirmity;

9

care of infants, convalescents or aged persons and for penal or correctional detention in which the

liberty of the inmates is restricted. Institutional buildings ordinarily provide sleeping accommodation

for the occupants.

Building and structures under Group C shall be further sub-divided as follows:

Sub-division C-1 Hospitals and sanatoria

Sub-division C-2 Custodial Institutions

Sub-division C-3 Penal and mental institutions

Group ‘D’ Assembly Buildings

These shall include any building or part of a building, where number of persons not less than 50

congregate or gather for amusement, recreation, social, religious, patriotic, civil, travel and similar

purposes, for example, theaters, motion picture houses, assembly halls, auditoria, exhibition halls,

museums, skating rings, gymnasiums, restaurants, places of worship, dance halls, club rooms,

passenger stations and terminals of air, surface and marine public transportation services, recreation

piers and stadia, etc.

Buildings under Group D shall be further sub-divided as follows:

Sub-division D-1 Buildings having a theatrical and motion picture or any other stage and fixed

seats for over 1000 persons.

Sub-division D-2 Buildings having a theatrical or motion picture or any other stage and fixed seats

upto 1000 persons.

Sub-division D-3 Buildings without a permanent stage having accommodation for 300 or more

persons but no permanent seating arrangement.

Sub-division D-4 Buildings without a permanent stage having accommodation for less than 300

persons with no permanent seating arrangements.

Sub-division D-5 All other structures including temporary structures designed for assembly of

people not covered by sub-divisions D-1 to D-4, at ground level.

Sub-division D-6 Buildings having mixed occupancies providing facilities such as shopping, cinema

theaters, and restaurants.

Sub-division D-7 All other structures, elevated or underground, for assembly of people not covered

by sub-divisions D-1 to D-6.

Group ‘E’ – Business Buildings

These shall include any building or part of a building which is used for transaction of business (other

than that covered by Group F and part of buildings covered) for keeping of accounts and records

and similar purposes, professional establishments, services facilities, etc. City halls, town halls,

court houses and libraries shall be classified in this group so far as the principal function of these

is transaction of public business and keeping of books and records.

Business buildings shall be further sub-divided as follows:

Sub-divisions E-1 Offices, banks, professional establishments, like offices of architects, engineers,

doctors, lawyers and police stations.

Sub-division E-2 Laboratories, research establishments, libraries and test houses.

Sub-division E-3 Computer installations.

Sub-division E-4 Telephone Exchange.

Sub-division E-5 Broadcasting Stations and T.V. Stations.

10

Group ‘F’ – Mercantile Buildings

These shall include any building or part of a building, which is used as shops, stores, market, for

display and sale of merchandise, either wholesale or retail.

Mercantile buildings shall be further sub-divided as follows:

Sub-division F-1 Shops, stores, departmental stores markets with area upto 500 m2 . Sub-division

F-2 Shops, stores, departmental stores markets with area more than 500 m2 . Sub-division F-3

Underground Shopping centers. Storage and service facilities incidental to the sale of merchandise

and located in same building shall be included under this group.

Group ‘G’ industrial Buildings

These shall include any building or part of a building or structure, in which products or materials

of all kinds and properties are fabricated, assembled, manufactured or processed, for example,

assembly plants, industrial laboratories, dry cleaning plants, power plants, generating units, pumping

stations, fumigation chambers, laundries, buildings or structures in gas plants, refineries, dairies and

saw-mills, etc.

Buildings under Group G shall be further sub-divided as follows:

Sub-division G-1 Buildings used for low hazard industries.

Sub-division G-2 Buildings used for moderate hazard industries.

Sub-division G-3 Buildings used for high hazard industries.

Group ‘H’ – Storage Buildings

These shall include any building or part of a building used primarily for storage or sheltering (including

services, processing or repairs incidental to storage) of goods, ware or merchandise (except those

that involve highly combustible or explosive products or materials) vehicles or animals, for example,

ware houses, cold storage, freight depots, transit sheds, storehouses, truck and marine terminals,

garages, hangers, grain elevators, barns and stables. Storage properties are characterized by the

presence of relatively small number of persons in proportion to the area. Any new use which

increases the number of occupants to a figure comparable with other classes of occupancy shall

change the classification of the building to that of the new use, for example, hangers used for

assembly purposes, warehouses used for office purposes, garages used for manufacturing.

Group ‘J’ – Hazardous Buildings

These shall include any building or part of a building which is used for the storage, handling,

manufacture or processing of highly combustible or explosive materials or products which are

liable to burn with extreme rapidity and or which may produce poisonous fumes oe explosions for

storage, handling, manufacturing or processing which involve highly corrosive, toxic or noxious

alkalis, acids or other liquids or chemicals producing flame, fumes and explosive, poisonous, irritant

or corrosive gases; and for the storage, handling or processing of any material producing explosive

mixtures of dust which result in the division of matter into fine particles subject to spontaneous

ignition. Examples of buildings in this class are those buildings which are used for:

a) Storage, under pressure of more than 0.1 N/mm2 and in quantities exceeding 70 m3 , of

acetylene, hydrogen, illuminating and natural gases, ammonia, chlorine, phosgene, sulphur

dioxide, methyl oxide and all gases subject to explosion, fume or toxic hazard, cryogenic

gases, etc.

11

b) Storage and handling of hazardous and highly flammable liquids, liquefiable gases like

LPO, rocket propellants, etc.

c) Storage and handling of hazardous and highly flammable or explosive materials (other than

liquids); and

d) Manufacture of article flowers, synthetic leather, ammunition, explosives and fireworks.

Types of Construction

Type I Construction: Type I construction, which was known as “fire-resistive” construction for

many years, uses totally non-combustible materials, such as reinforced concrete, brick, stone,

concrete block, and structural steel that is protected with concrete and other material to provide

a specified fire resistance rating. The walls, roof, and all structural supports must meet established

fire resistance criteria. Type I construction provides the greatest fire resistance (from 2 to 4 hours)

of any of the construction types.

Type II Construction: Type II construction, formerly known as “noncombustible construction,”

makes use of noncombustible or limited-combustible materials in all walls, floor, roof, and ceiling

construction. It does not, however, meet the criteria for fire-resistive construction, usually because

steel structural members may be exposed or have not been protected to meet the same criteria

established for fire-resistive construction.

Type III Construction: Type III construction, formerly known as “ordinary construction,” has

noncombustible or limited-combustible walls with all or part of the interior structural elements

being of combustible materials. Because of the wooden structural elements in this type of construction,

the structural elements are subject to ignition during a fire.

Type IV Construction: Type IV construction, formerly known as “heavy timber construction,”

uses exterior walls of masonry. However, the other structural members are basically unprotected

wooden timbers that measure 8 in. by 8 in. (200 mm by 200 mm) or larger and thus have large

cross-sectional areas. The mass of these large timbers provides an inherent fire resistance, making

ignition and structural failure from fire less likely than is the case for other smaller wood construction

elements. Although the walls of this type of construction offer a high level of fire resistance, wooden

supporting columns, floors, and the roof can absorb heat and eventually burn and fail during a fire.

The wooden construction materials can also provide additional fuel for the fire’s growth and potential

avenues for fire spread.

The fire resistance of a building or its structural and non structural elements is expressed in hours

against a specified fuel load which is expressed in kcallm2 , and against a certain intensity of fire.

The fire resistance test for structural element shall be done in accordance with good practice.

Once the type of building is assessed it is easy to follow the norms for building up safety of the

building and deciding the control measures.

12

Chapter – IV

GIS Technology and Applications for theFire Service

ave taken on new importance with challenges facing the fire service today. Effective response

cannot be continually achieved without adequate planning and preparedness. One of the emerging

tools that helps the fire service optimize its emergency services delivery is geographic information

system (GIS) technology. GIS supports planning, preparedness, mitigation, response, and incident

management. GIS extends the capability of maps—intelligent, interactive maps with access to all

types of information, analysis, and data. More important, GIS provides the required information

when, where, and how it is needed.

When a fire occurs, any delay of responding fire companies can make the difference between the

rescue of occupants versus serious injury or death. The critical time between fire containment and

flashover can be measured in seconds. Fast access to critical information is essential. Tools that

help firefighters pinpoint the emergency call location, assess the potential consequences, and

determine the most efficient strategy will minimize property damage and better protect the safety

of occupants and fire service personnel. Historically, first responders have relied on experience,

good equipment, communication, and teamwork to achieve successful emergency response.

However, with all the challenges confronting emergency crews today, effective response requires

good planning, risk management, comprehensive training, and intelligent deployment through

preparation. GIS technology has become a powerful tool for improving all aspects of fire service

delivery systems. As populations and building development increase, the role of the fire service

becomes more demanding and complex. As never before, fire departments are being called upon

to deliver services with greater efficiency and economy. Citizen tax-reduction initiatives, burgeoning

needs for different kinds of local government services, and a host of other factors have brought

new demands to the desks of fire chiefs—most notably, the demands to “do more with less” and

to do it “better, faster, and cheaper.” GIS technology brings additional power to the process

whereby hazards are evaluated, service demands are analyzed, and resources are deployed. In

addition, GIS contributes to the speed with which emergency responders are able to locate, respond,

size up, and deploy to an emergency.

The fire service mission is to protect life and property from fire and other natural or manmade

emergencies through planning and preparedness, incident response, public education, and code

enforcement. To accomplish this mission, GIS is rapidly becoming an essential tool to analyze,

define, clarify, and visualize community fire problems in the development and execution of fire

protection policy. GIS can model a community or landscape; analyze and display features important

to the fire service mission; and provide access to important documents, photographs, drawings,

data tables, and so forth, associated with features on the GIS map display. GIS can analyze and

measure response time capabilities; identify incident hot spots by time and day of week; and target

hazards, hydrants, and other information important for deployment analysis. First responders can

have immediate access to critical information for emergency incident locations or best route and

detailed information concerning the building or facility to which they are responding. Incident

commanders can maintain better scene control with detailed maps and imagery of the emergency

location as well as the exposures and features around the incident. GIS is essential for the management

of large-scale emergencies or disasters where large numbers of public safety resources are deployed,

13

with various resource assignments during a dynamic incident. Resource status, event prediction,

incident facility identification, public information dissemination, and incident status are all more

effectively and efficiently performed using GIS.

Use of GIS to reduce risk and vulnerability

The reason being simple: right information at the right time in the right form and GIS could be the

possible way in the absence of a comprehensive out of box GIS solution in place and faced with

realities, there can be no doubt on the need for a GIS based FMIS in place

GIS can be used quickly to locate the place of hazard, nearer to a given fire station and identifying

a hospital location on a GIS based map of Delhi City. GIS map based interface, a linkage of

database of the fire station and the base map of Delhi. Thereby creating a searchable interface for

fire affected area. It also showcases how clustering technique can be used along with GIS to

reduce the precious time lost in prioritizing, which fire station to connect.

The primary objective of this project is to develop a GIS & GPS based fire management system

for high rise building in Delhi and planning with spatial emphasis on the following

· To highlight the need for the study by establishing the magnitude of life, property and effort

involved in fire safety and mitigation

· To determine the risk zones based on the land use, building and activity in tune with the

National Building Code guidelines.

· To come up with an Emergency Response Management System for the city using GIS as

a decision making tool.

· Effective coordination and efficient utilization of resources in case of emergency

· Maintain fire resources database of the city.

· Maintain a detail geo socio- economic database of the district.

· A user interactive modal broad based information retrieval and quarry on natural and a

spatial database.

· Extraction of information based on user specifies criteria.

· Providing the user interface to customize the package of different database.

Use of GIS in Fire Hazards

1:25,000 scale map of Delhi city used for creating the digital base map of the area. The point

feature (fire stations) that have been included in the base map have been geo positioned by locating

the number of the fire station and its position from the control room.

This is very much essential for accurately locating the position of fire station on the base map to

the possible extent, to route the study of networks and generation of shortest path for the Delhi

fire service as a mere demonstration of the efficiency of a “Geographical Information system”. The

emphasis was to display each and every building and street so as to create a database, which could

be used by the Delhi Fire service to plan for an emergency. Creating a spatial database for the

Delhi Fire service by using a GIS and RS techniques.

The list that has been included in the base map includes road railway, water bodies, railway

station, bus terminus, hospital, educational institution, all there along with the location of prospective

14

of fire stations. The other base map feature is essential to serve as landmarks and quickly locate

the fire stations.

To develop a database on:-

High rise buildings, Fire stations, Nearby hospitals, Water tanks ,Police stations.

Road network, Park / Open areas.(For rehabilitation)

Input layers:- Sports venues initially for C.P., Fire stations, Nearby hospitals. Water tanks, Police

stations, Road network, Park/Open areas, Above map shows all included layers and symbols.

Development of the model (Fire support system)

The model is able to analyze the following queries. Display information of various fire safety

parameters of the affected building. Calculating point to point distances.

Analyzing the nearest feature of interest with respect to the affected area.

Advantages of the system

· Instant display of all the fire safety parameters of the concerned building.

· Find the best path between locations, for the movements of resources.

· Nearest fire station, hospitals, water tank etc.

· Efficient management of resources available at the nearest fire stations.

· Perform distance and cost-of-travel analysis, to determine the best course of action by

analyzing the alternatives

· Perform statistical analysis, for decision making and documentation purposes.

· Generate new data using simple image processing tool

· This also helps to plan the safe routes and the escape routes for emergency planning.

This image shows the instant display of all details and parameters.

Response and Recovery

GIS Technology vastly improves the efficiency of fire operations, including response, planning, and

ground command, through a comprehensive understanding of the location of the fire, Successful

fire operations depend on obtaining information about the location of fire quickly, establishing

priorities and implementing a response plan.

GIS is used to rapidly locate and visually display incident locations. GIS selects the closest available

response units and with appropriate data, display transportation routes for responding equipment.

These feature become increasingly valuable when multiple incidents begin to occur or when mutual

aid units are utilized.

Valuable data about location can be gathered while responding to the incident through GIS – Floor

plans, Hazardous materials, fire fighting equipment available, occupancy, and so on. Responding

units can also receive information on traffic congestion or best possible route.

Access to Library and to Internet website may help to collect information and related data as it

is proposed to rely upon the secondary data for preparation of dissertation. The study material

15

distributed by faculty in persuasion of the Post Graduate Diploma course in disaster preparedness

and rehabilitation would also be taken into consideration. The important data source would be

listed in the reference section at the end of the dissertation.

Preventive and safety measures for fire:

Many of the problems are attributable to the lack of awareness and knowledge about the

concept of safety:

· Database and comprehensive evaluation of risks of each single area, its vulnerability to

particular Disaster and available equipment, personal and foolproof communication system

is not available.

· Adequate resources for the services and coordination with the cities is not there.

· It is recognized that problem of access inside the jhuggi clusters will take time to resolve,

and may be dependent on relocation in new settlement colonies, for which many of the

JJ residents may not be eligible. Also it may not be possible to provide in the master plan

for relocation of all jj colonies, and in the alternatives, it may be necessary for in situ up

gradation in many cases. It was therefore felt that provision for adequate water supply for

fire fighting vehicles should be made to all JJ colonies.

· Very large number of fires in JJ cluster were caused due to electric short circuiting, and

in most cases such electric power supply was conveyed by overhead wires through theft

of electricity. In such cases it was decided that BSES and NDPL should identify the most

dangerous/ critical area in JJ clusters, and issue notices asking persons living in the JJ

clusters to take individual connection within a time frame, after which in case of defaulter,

existing electricity connection would be dismantled with police protection, and prosecution

launched under the concerned laws for theft of electricity and even obstruction of public

servants on duty, in the event of such a contingency.

Safety measure for industrial Unit

· Use of top quality insulation material and heat resistant cables to reduce the propensity

to fire;

· Use of electronic rodent repellants in the cable galleries.

· Non-combustible substitute for the glass wool insulation for air-conditioners and wooden

partitions.

· Provision for smoke and heat sensors and other modern electronic aids in the sensitive and

fire prone areas;

· Ban on entry of match boxes, lighters and such other inflammable items into installations

handling oil/gas;

· Provision for a dedicated communication system for fire-fighting/fire station;

· Installation of an integrated CCTV system to monitor and untoward happening in the cable

gallery and other fire prone areas;

· Periodical inspections of electrical wiring and equipment by an independent and qualified

body of electrical engineers.

16

· Regular checking of fire headers and fire alarms.

· Provisions of portable fire extinguishers at fire prone places.

· Periodic review of the firefighting arrangements by an independent and qualified authority

to plug loopholes, if any;

· Identification and display of escape routes

· Provision of proper forced ventilation in the fire area.

Safety measures for chemical disaster

· The chemical markets at Tilak Bazar and Lal Kuan are concerned, it was recommended

that DDA would arrange for allotment of land as alternate location.

· The vacated area actually leads to decongestion and not to fresh unauthorized occupation.

· Chawadi Bazar and Sadar Bazar markets, the alternate sites had been identified and were

being developed at Gazipur.

· Vacated land should be safe and prevent misuse of the same and also take steps for their

redevelopment and authorize their proper use.

· Near about 685 chemicals considered hazardous figured in the concerned scheduled of

the rules framed under the Delhi Municiple Corporation Act. In view of this, it was stated

that there were difficulties in inspecting such a large number of godowns and determining

wheather particular chemicals were stored in the same , and a suitable site for shifting of

many godowns had been identified at holambi Kalan.

· Emergency light with battery back up: Lights provided in the common areas in the building

to come into operation in case of failure of electric supply to keep the escape routes

illuminated.

· Electric wiring: type of layout, current carrying capacity, metarial of conductor and safety

devices such as miniature circuit breaker as prescribed by Indian Electricity Rules for the

specific premises depending upon the voltage.

· Means of escape: Means such as doors, corridors, staircase provided in the building for

use by the occupants to walk/run away from the fire area.

· Smoke venting: A mechanical system comprising of exhaust fans connected to the smoke

ducts that runs on the ceiling through the area under protection and automatically operated

with the operation of the automatic detection system to remove smoke and hot gases from

the to facilitate evacuation of the occupants.

· Sprinkler system : If covered area is more than 1500m2 or seating capacity more than

1000 persons.

· Illuminated Exit sign., Underground water tank: 150000 litrs, Terrace Tank : 5000 litres

for hose reel & 10,000 litre if sprinkler is provided, Access in case there is a boundary

wall in the plot

17

Chapter – V

Case Studies: Major Fires in Delhi

1- Punjab Kesri Press and Wazirpur Depot, Delhi.

On 13/10/2008 at 0715 hrs. fire call was received at Delhi Fire Service Control Room through

Mr Tazid Khan from Mb. No. 65515312 on EFT 101 stating that there is a fire in a factory at

above mentioned address. Immediately, at 0716 hrs 02 Water Tenders and 01 Water Bousers

with Station Officer as In-charge were responded. On reaching the site and assessing the situation,

the Officer-in-charge started fire-fighting operations.

At 0725 hrs. Officer-in-charge upgraded the fire as of “Make 4” Category and accordingly at

0726 hrs, additional 03 Water Tenders with Assistant Divisional Officer was responded. At 0730

hrs. Officer-in-charge upgraded the fire as of “Make 6” Category and accordingly at 0731 hrs,

additional 01 Water Tenders, 02 Water Bouser and 01 Motor pump with Divisional Officer was

responded. At 0732 hrs. category was upgraded as “ Medium” and accordingly at 0733 hrs,

additional 03 Water Tenders, 03 Water Bousers, 02 Motor pumps and 01 Hose Tender were sent

to the fire scene along with 01 Divisional Officer and 02 Asstt. Divisional Officers. At 0733 hrs

Dy. C.F.O.-III also rushed to the scene of fire.At 0750 hrs. category was upgraded as “ Serious”

and accordingly at 0751 hrs, additional 04 Water Tenders, 01 Water Bousers and 01 CCL Van

were sent to the fire scene alongwith 02 Asstt. Divisional Officers.

At 0751hrs; Chief Fire Officer, Dy. C.F.O.-I and Dy. C.F.O.-II also rushed to the scene of fire.

Informative message of fire “Surrounded” was received at 0900 hrs The fire was brought “Under

Control” at 09.35 hrs. “Stop Message” was received at 1010 hrs with cooling operation to continue.

The fire was in the Print Man Pvt. Ltd factory at Plot No. 08, Printing Press Area, near Wazirpur

Bus Depot, comprising of ground, First Floor and second floors in an area approx. 1000 Sq. Yard,

involving paper, packing and plastic material used in calendar making. One Charred Body recovered

and handed over to PCR and S T O Bhoop Singh got injured and removed to Babu Jagjeevan

Ram Hospital and admitted in emergency Ward.

2- The Grand Hotel, Vasant Kunj – II, Nelson Mandela Marg, New Delhi.

On 26/1/2008 at 1251 Hrs, a fire call was received at Delhi Fire Service Control Room through

Mr Vijay from telephone No. 41668430 stating that there is a fire in Restaurant at above mentioned

address. Immediately, at 1252 Hrs 04 Water Tenders, 01 Water Bousers, 01 Motor Pump and

01 Bronto Skylift with Divisional Officer as In-charge were responded. On receiving several calls,

at 1255 Hrs, 02 Water Bousers, 01 Motor Pump with additional B A Set and Thermal Image

Camera were also responded.

At 1315 Hrs, Officer-in-charge informed that fire is in basement of the hotel. At 1331 Hrs, Dy

Chief Fire Officer – III rushed to the fire scene.

At 1340 hrs. category was upgraded as “ Medium Fire ” and accordingly at 1341 hrs, additional

06 Water Tenders, 05 Water Bousers, 02 Foam Tenders, 02 Hose Tender, 01 Motor Pump and

01 Rescue Tender were sent to the fire scene alongwith 01 Divisional Officers and 2 Asstt. Divisional

Officers and Dy Chief Fire Officer – II as In-Charge also rushed to the scene of fire. At 1341

hrs, The CATS Ambulance was also informed for further action. At 1345 Hrs, Officer-in-charge

further upgraded the fire to “Serious Category” and accordingly at 1346 Hrs, additional 06 Water

18

Tenders, 03 Water Bousers, 01, Bronto Skylift & 01 Motor pumps, were sent to the fire scene

alongwith Asstt. Divisional Officer & Divisional Officer as In Charge. At 1346 Hrs, Chief Fire

Officer also rushed to the scene of fire. At, 1515 Hrs Dy Chief Fire Office-I also rushed to the

scene of fire. At 1540 hrs, “Stop Message” was received in DFS Control Room from the

Officer-in-Charge.

Fire was in basement, ground, & first floor the building involving restaurant, kitchen and banquet

hall. The Hotel was evacuated at the initial stage as a preventive measure to avoid life loss. The

fire was controlled and extinguished at the place of its origin and not allowed to spread to guest

floor. One guest was rescued using Bronto Skylift. 01 Station Officer and 01 Fireman & Chief

Fire Officer sustained minor injuries and removed to hospital by CATS for treatment. Last fire

unit returned from fire at 2220 hrs.

3- Huts at Geeta Colony, Shamshan Ghat, Delhi

On. 05/04/2006 at 1915 hrs a fire call was received in Delhi Fire Service Control Room through

Mr. Ram Chander from PCO Telephone stating that there is a fire in huts at above address.

Immediately at 1916 hrs. 07 Water Tenders, 03 Water Bouser with Asstt. Divisional Officer as

In charge was responded. On reaching the site and assessing the situation, the Officer In charge

started fire-fighting operations.

At 1920 hours. Officer-In charge upgraded the fire as of “ Medium Category” & accordingly

at 1921 hrs, additional 10 Water Tenders, 06 Water Bousers, 04 Motor pump, 01 Hose tender

were sent to the fire scene. Deputy Chief Fire Officer-II also rushed to the scene of fire. At 1955

hrs. Informative Message was received in control room from the officer-in-charge that fire is

‘Surrounded’. At 2015 hours. Informative Message was received in control room from the officer-

in-charge that fire is ‘Under-Control’ and ”Stop Message” received at 2020 hours. Fire was in

about 250 Huts and gutted resulting one woman, which was unconscious, removed to hospital.

There is no direct access for the fire engines to the scene of fire. Fire units were delayed for

approaching the fire scene due to heavy traffic congestion at Vikas Marg. One DFS personal

sustained injuries and given treatment in the hospital. Last unit returned at 2355 hrs.

4- Deep Mahal, Bhagirath Palace, Chandni Chowk, Delhi.

On 11/10/2005 at 01:25 hrs. a call of fire was received in Delhi Fire Service Control Room

through S.I. Mahender from P C R Hot line informing about a fire at the above said premises..

Immediately 02 Water Tenders from nearby fire stations were responded with Asstt. Div. Officer

as in-charge. The fire was upgraded to “Make Four” category at 02:00 hrs. Additional turnout

of 03 Water tenders, 02 Water bousers, 01 Motor pump responded with Sub Officer as in-

charge. The fire was declared as make six at 02:35 hrs and accordingly 03 Water Tenders, 03

Water bousers and 01 Motor pump were responded with. Divisional Officer as in-charge..

At 02:45 hours. Officer-In-charge declared the Fire as of “Medium” Category & Simultaneously

at 02:46 hrs, additional 03 Water Tenders, 01 Water Bousers, 01 Motor pump with Deputy Chief

Fire Officer-I and Divisional Officer(BCP) were also rushed to the fire scene.

At 03:55 hrs. Fire was declared of “Serious” Category and accordingly additional turn out of

five water tenders, two water bousers, one Hose Tender, one light van and one control van were

made. Chief Fire Officer also rushed to the fire scene. Informative message of fire “surrounded”

was received at 05:10 hrs The fire was brought “under Control” at 05:25 hrs. “Stop message”

was received at 05:35 hours.

19

The fire was in cinematography films stored in the temporary structure made of tin-roof with

wood/Iron supports at the terrace of the third floor of the building in an area of approximately 500

square meters. These films being highly inflammable in nature, the fire spread very quickly and

started burning furiously. The water was discharged from fire hose positioned at adjacent buildings

and lines were taken up using the available staircases of building. Though the burning material was

falling down, the fire was not allowed to spread to other floors of the same building or to adjoining

buildings. Approach to the premises was difficult and water was required to be released from the

main road. There was initial delay in fighting fire due to electric current in the total steel structure

and Firemen getting shock as and when water was used.

5- Huts at Near SDM Office, Shastri Nagar, Krishan Kunj, (Near Yamuna

Pusta), Delhi

On. 23/05/2007 at 1427 hours, a fire call was received at Fire Control Room through Mr. Ramesh

from Telephone No. 27312055 stating that there is a fire in the huts at above mentioned address.

Immediately, at 1428 hours, 04 Water Tenders, 02 Water Bouser with Station Officers on duty

responded. On reaching the site and assessing the situation, the Officer in charge started fire-

fighting operations.

At 1432 hours. Officer-Incharge upgraded the Fire as of “Make-6 Category” & accordingly

at 1433 hrs, additional 02 Water Tenders, 01 Motor pump, with 01 Divisional Officer and 02

Assistant Divisional officers were sent. At 1435 hours. Officer-Incharge upgraded the fire as of

“ Medium Category” & accordingly at 1436 hrs, additional 06 Water Tenders, 02 Water Bousers,

02 Motor pump, 01 Hose Tender and other units were sent with 02 Divisional Officer and 01

Assistant Divisional Officer. 01 Rescue Responder and Police team / Disaster team from Laxmi

Nagar Fire Station also responded to the fire scene. CATS Ambulance and MCD was also informed

to take necessary action.

At 1436 hours, Deputy Chief Fire Officer - I & Deputy Chief Fire Officer - III also rushed to

the scene of fire. At 1440 hours. Officer-Incharge upgraded the fire as of “Serious Category” &

accordingly at 1441 hours, additional 02 Water Tenders, 02 Water Bousers, 02 Motor pumps

were sent to the fire scene. Dy. Chief Fire Officer – II and 01 Assistant Divisional Officer also

rushed to the scene of fire. At 1441 hrs, the Officer in charge demanded the additional police force

which was informed to Police Control Room.

At 1510 hrs, Dy. Chief Fire Officer – I informed to control to send the police force immediately

for crowd control and the same was informed to Police Control Room. At 1540 hours. informative

Message was received in control room from the officer-in-charge that fire is ‘Under-Control’ and

”Stop Message” received at 1615 hrs. Fire was in approximately 350 – 400 huts. Three persons

sustain burn injuries and removed to LNJP Hospital by CATS Ambulance.

Delhi Fire Service Official, Sh. Manik Chand, Sub Officer posted at Connaught Place Fire Station

had sustain burn injury at fire scene and sent to LNJP Hospital by CATS Ambulance. Last unit

returned at 20.05 hours.

7- M- 15, Badli Industrial Area, Delhi.

On 28/04/2008 at 2355 hrs. a fire call was received at Delhi Fire Service Control Room through

Mr. Sunil from Mb. No. 9810977660 on EFT 101 stating that there is a fire in a factory at above

mentioned address. Immediately, at 2356 hrs 02 Water Tenders and 02 Water Bousers with Sub

Officer as In-charge were responded. On reaching the site and assessing the situation, the Officer-

20

turnout of 07 water tenders, 06 water bousers, 02 rescue responder, 03 motor pumps, 01 light

van, 01 ambulance, 01 control van was made. DCFO-II and DCFO-III also rushed to the

scene. The fire was declared “Serious” at 22:00 hours and accordingly additional turnout of 02

water tenders, 03 water bousers, 01 motor pump, 01 hose tender was made. Chief Fire Officer

also rushed to the scene Informative message of fire “Under Control” was received at 22:40 hrs;

and “Stop message” at 22:45 hrs. The last fire engine was withdrawn at 03:25 hrs on 16/04/05.

The fire was in approximately 175 temporary khokha / shops involving prasad, gift items, food

items, and petromax that spread in an area of 5000 square meters approx.. One charred body

was found, which could not be identified and was handed over to Delhi Police.

Guide lines for Fire Safety in High Rise Buildings

Fire Safety Requirements for Buildings :

A. For the time being, all buildings with a height of over 1 5m should be termed high-rise buildings.

The height of high-rise buildings may be reviewed after building bye- laws have been revised and

fire services have been properly equipped.

Local Authorities should immediately take up revision of their building bye-laws, to cover fire

safety requirements of all buildings in their respective jurisdiction — particularly the buildings which

are more than 15 m high. The revision should take into account the National Building Code of India

and local conditions and should include the following compulsory provisions.

a. Consultations with the local Fire Chief at the Planning stages of the building;

b. Approval of the local Fire Chief before grant of occupancy certificate;

(iii) Annual inspection by local Fire Chief or his representative and withdrawal of licence

for occupation of building in case of any alterations seriously affecting fire safety;

c. Prohibition in the use of high rise buildings for hazardous occupancies, unless such buildings

are located away from populated areas and extra fire safety measures are taken;

d. Provision of safe refuge areas and aggress routes in all buildings which are over 24m high;

e. Provision of automatic fire detection system, with facility for simultaneous alerting the fire

services;

f. Provision of emergency communication facilities for contacting occupants of all floors;

g. Provision of sprinklers in the entire building (height to be determined according to

occupancy). except in places where water should not be used. In such places, other

automatic fixed fire extinguishing installations should be provided;

h. Provision of adequate stored water supply for fire service use and installation of wet

risers, internal, hydrants, fire hoses and hose reels at every landing;

i. Provision of first aid fire fighting appliances in the form fo fire extinguishers;

j. Provision of automatic escapes and rope ladders mail buildings upto 24 m high;

k. Provision for using the roof of all building over 30m in height for carrying out rescue by

helicopters;

l. Provision of adequate number of lifts for fire service use;

21

m. Alternative source of power, which should take over automatically in case of failure of

normal power supply in all buildings exceeding 24 m in height. consideration should be

given for this provision to be made common for groups of buildings in the interest of

economy.

A. All existing high rise buildings (over 15m high) should be surveyed and the owners should

be required to provide reasonable fire safety measures within a specified time.

B. l.S.l. should take up the formulation of National Fire codes which should be enforced by

law.

The Fire Department Response to Disasters

If we weigh the similarities and differences between fire situations and disasters the similarity factor

does seem to dominate. Fires and disasters, although separate events, are related because the fire

department is the logical agency to respond to both.

In recent years, as the hazardous materials problem has grown more complex, many fire and

disaster situations have become interwoven. This provides yet another reason why the fire department

is the logical agency to respond first to disasters.

Disasters often include fires, hazardous materials, and other components of the fire fighter’s job

description. Sometimes, fires and explosions escalate to include all of the standard components

of a “ disaster.” Consider what the Cincinnati Fire Division faced when a fire and explosion suddenly

became a hazmat incident, a mass-casualty incident, a major EMS triage operation, and a widespread

evacuation operation: “The CFD’s high degree of professionalism would be put to the test on July

19, 1990, when and explosion and fire at the BASF plant (in the Evanston residential neighborhood)

reverberated throughout the City.” (9) The source of the explosion was a reactor vessel that was

being cleaned with a solvent. When a pressure relief disc ruptured, releasing a cloud of flammable

vapors, it took only a source of ignition to produce an explosion that could be seen over 25 miles

away, and heard over 10 miles distant. Although 83 persons were injured, only two were killed.

A four-story building was demolished, and some of the other 17 were damaged on the 9.5 acre

site where resins were manufactured for can and paper coatings. Exploding drums in the storage

yard and collapsed stairways complicated the rescue of injured employees, but the hospital disaster

plan proved very helpful. The area was evacuated for a half mile downwind, and some of the fire

fighters required hospitalization for heat exhaustion. Although preplanning discussions had been

held with most of the responding agencies, it was found that the coordination and communications

among them could be improved.

It is not just luck or accident when a fire department operates efficiently during a major disaster.

It is the result of effective planning, training, and cooperative coordination with supporting agencies.

These activities are prerequisites of a successful disaster response.

Civilian and Military Roles in Disaster Control

What is meant by the term “disaster control” it may have various meanings in the different emergency

services, but for this book we will assume that “ disaster control” is the use of all available measures

to prevent casualties and damage, to minimize the effects of disaster, and to recover from it as soon

as possible.

What is the role of the emergency services in disaster control? Ordinarily, the departments of fire

law enforcement, engineering, public health, plus medical people, are the principal “first-in response

22

forces in a major emergency or disaster. They are sometimes assisted by similarly trained personnel

from the state or nearby communities, but they are the “front-line troops” who must make the

rescues and save lives and property.

“Civil defense” refers to the collective activities of all emergency forces, professional and volunteer,

and those who help to evacuate the casualties, care for the wounded and dispossessed, bury the

dead, feed the hungry, shelter the refugees, and restore things to normalcy.

What is the military role in disaster control? If the disaster happens to be a war, then military force

will repulse an enemy attack and provide military defense; in other disasters it may also have

limited responsibility. Military forces are often called to assist in coping with major disasters, in

deploying helicopters and boats in search and rescue operations, but the overall directions and

directions of disaster control and relief in peacetime is a civilian responsibility.

Freight Trains Emergency Action

As with truck accidents, until the nature of the cargo is ascertained, a highly defensive posture

should be maintained in freight train accidents. Manifests or waybills, usually carried in the locomotive

(previously in cabooses when they were widely used) should indicate whether hazardous materials

are being transported. Not all hazardous materials require a warning placard; not all placards are

indicative of every dangerous reaction that a product can create, and such placards are often

difficult to locate in twisted wreckage and dense smoke.

If the name of the chemical can be determined, but your hazardous materials references do not

list it, do not assume it is harmless. Have your dispatcher call CHEMTREC at 800-424-9300 (toll

free) if there is any doubt about its toxicity or instability and try to obtain more information before

you commit fire fighters to a close attack. Due to the large volumes of hazardous materials that

can be carried by train, and possib1 vapor clouds of corresponding large magnitude, a railroad

incident provides an ideal application for a CAMEO program.

If the accident has occurred in a non populated area where no buildings are exposed, withdraw

all personnel and notify the railroad that you will standby a half-mile away until given assurance

by its safety personnel (not the brakeman, conductor, or engineer) that the materials involved do

not present an unusual hazard to your fire fighters. Do not ever risk lives of personnel merely to

protect cargo and railroad equipment.

If the accident occurs in a business district, such as derailment of tank cars and box cars piled on

top of one another, and one of the ruptured tank cars is releasing a large volume of liquefied gas,

do not assume that it is nontoxic or nonflammable. Have everyone responding to the emergency

don self-contained breathing apparatus and full protective clothing while laying lines to protect

exposures and getting occupants of nearby structures evacuated to a distance of at least 2,000

feet. Where such defense action is taken promptly, a disaster can be averted, as was the case in

a Dow Chemical Plant in Freeport, Texas. About ten minutes before the tank car of ethylene oxide

exploded. Employees saw the tank venting and immediately had the plant evacuation alarm sounded;

plant personnel were able to clear out of the area and find protection behind remote buildings and

structures.

It is not safe to assume that you will have time to prepare for an explosion. The box car of bagged

ammonium nitrate did not detonate in the Traskwood, Arkansas, train derailment until 40 minutes

after the accident, but the tank car of propane at Kingman, Arizona, exploded about 15 to 20

minutes after vapors escaping from its relief valve became ignited, Thirteen fire fighters were within

23

150 feet of the tank car when it “let go.” Twelve died from thermal burns-their turnout coats and

whatever street clothes they had been wearing burned off their bodies. A thirteenth man died and

95 spectators who had gathered along the highway about 1,000 feet from the explosion were

injured.

In this instance, the fire department was attempting to keep the tank car cool with a one-inch

booster line until larger backup lines could be laid from a water supply 1,200 feet away; as

demonstrated here, a small hose stream is apt to be insufficient to prevent a BLEVE (Boiling

Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion). Even 500 gpm directed from portable or fixed turrets cannot

prevent such an explosion unless the streams are able to bathe the area where impinging flames

are causing the metal shell to heat and weaken from internal pressure of the heated product.

You cannot rely upon suddenly increased sound intensity or flare-up of the burning product to give

sufficient warning to withdraw your forces prior to the explosion. Therefore, unless it is necessary

to take a calculated risk to save lives, do not attack such fires at all where flames are impinging

upon the shell of any tank car; even if the product is nontoxic and nonflammable, a violent rupture

can take place from vapor expansion that relief valves cannot handle, especially if the car is inverted,

and the valves are in the liquid space.

If cars are piled up, and you cannot see if flames are impinging on tank car shells, assume they

are, and do not allow anyone but your reconnaissance team to approach the wreck until the

product is identified and you realized that you have the personnel and resources available to handle

the situation. While making this determination, keep all fire companies and everyone else clear of

the fire to a distance of at least 2,000 feet.

If nursing homes or similar institutions are nearby that will take considerable time to evacuate, it

may be possible to set up portable monitors, left unattended, with large tips to direct heavy streams

on the exposed tank shells. If a good water supply is not readily available, even by relaying from

distant hydrants or ponds, the railroad may be able to bring in tank cars of water along with cranes

and other emergency equipment.

If the disaster consists of exploding bombs, as was the case in the railroad yards at Antelope,

California, you may have to protect homes that are not heavily involved in fire, and disregard

buildings that are beyond help. In this incident, almost two million pounds of bombs exploded over

a period of several hours, leveling the town of Antelope, destroying a Citrus Heights fire station

and 205 railroad cars, injuring about fifty, and causing millions of dollars in damage to buildings

within a wide radius. Thousands of residents in a two-mile area in western Citrus Heights and

Roseville were evacuated. Some of the fire fighting forces, not learning until after the emergency

was over that the county sheriff was legally in charge of the disaster, disregarded orders of his

deputies to stay out of the area where exploding bomb fragments were igniting homes. It took

about two hours to get the Emergency Operations Center functioning following the initial explosion

at 7:52 A.M. Unexploded bombs which flew through the air, along with great quantities of flying

shrapnel, landed great distances from the railroad yards. It was considered a miracle that no one

was killed.

The fire chief of Wenatchee, Washington, learned the value of having a mutual aid plan when a

tank car of monomethylamine nitrate solution detonated in the railroad yard, obliterating 75 railroad

cars, demolishing buildings in a three block radius, killing two persons and injuring 77 others. His

request for aid brought 182 fire fighters on twenty-three pumpers nine brush fire rigs, eight tankers,

plus several ambulances and rescue rigs. “One of the major problems that occurred at the explosion

24

was communications between the time (Fire Chief) Harris found out about the box cars of ammonium

nitrate and the time it took fire officials to locate the proper railroad personnel.

Duties of various ranks in the fire services as recommended by s.a.f.c.

The standardization of duties of various ranks in the Fire Services was first taken up at the fifth

meeting, but was deferred for want of full information regarding the prevalent duties in various

State fire services.

This was considered again at the ninth meeting and the following duties were recommended: -

General duties of an officer in-charge of station (station officer/sub-officer).

(a) To be available and to hold himself in readiness for any duties at any time he may be called

upon by his superiors to perform, and to keep his superiors acquainted with all matters

coming to his knowledge, affecting either his own station or general business of the Fire

Service Department.

(b) To obey implicitly all orders of his superiors and exact the strictest obedience and civility

from those serving under him; to devote the whole of his time and attention to the Fire

Service Department; to set an example to his many sobriety, cleanliness, promptitude,

civility and general attention to his duties.

(c) To take charge of and be responsible for all appliances, stores, equipments, etc. issued

to his station and submit a report to his superior as to the correctness or otherwise of such

articles taken charges of. He should submit a requisition to his superiors of the requirements

of his station as necessary.

(d) To see that all appliances and equipments are kept clean and in thorough working order,

stowing them properly for immediate use at fires and other emergencies without loss of

time.

(e) To instruct and drill all men under his charge in the use and maintenance of fire appliances

and equipments.

(f) To hold a muster parade for the inspection of uniforms, clothing, books, and equipments

at least once a month to see that the men keep themselves and their clothing in a clean

and good condition and to report shortages, if an, to his superiors. The inspection of

uniforms and equipments should be carried out periodically.

(g) To ensure that the rule is called at such times as he considers most suitable.

(h) To ensure prompt attendance of fire appliances and men. He should carry out surprise turn

outs at odd hours at least once a month .

(i) To ensure that his station time clock is checked with time clock or time signal at least twice

a day at proper intervals.

(j) To see that the main placed on station duty is properly dressed and is acquainted with his

duties.

(k) To see that the communication system is in proper working order and to send an immediate

report to appropriate authority when it is not so.

(l) To keep himself and men at all times in readiness, to receive any superior officer and to

25

give if required an accurate account of all matters connected with the station under his

charge.

(m) To see that the fire pump under his charge have water passed through their pumps at least

one every week. This only refers to cases where a fire pump has not otherwise worked

during the above period.

(n) To report at once to his superior Officer-in-charge of his Section and/or the Police, any

damage or casualty that may have occurred as a result of accident.

(o) To keep himself and his staff acquainted with the water supply within the area under his

charge. In cases where fire hydrants are provided, it shall be his duty to see that he and

his staff examine all the hydrants falling within his jurisdiction periodically as may be fixed

from time to time.

(p) To make himself and his staff acquainted with the network of communication system as

may be existing in the service.

(q) To make himself and his staff acquainted as far as possible wit the topography of his and

adjoining areas, as well as fire risks in such areas.

(r) To maintain all registers, log books, occurrence books, attendance rolls, etc. up-to-date

and to submit all returns and statements including pay rolls of his staff to his superiors every

month. All Fire and Special Services reports shall be submitted by him within 48 hours

of the occurrence. Sundays and Holidays being excepted.

Duties of Leading Fireman

(a) To be available at the station to which he is posted, while on duty.

(b) To obey implicitly all orders of his superiors and exact the strictest obedience and civility

from those serving under him.

(c) To see that the men placed under him on duty are properly dressed and are assigned duties

pertaining to the station, and fire appliances and such other duties that may be incidental

to the efficient working of the station. He shall also be responsible for maintaining the

station premises clean and tidy and appliances and equipments in neat and efficient working

condition, and ready for immediate use.

(d) To see that all equipments, gears, etc. are properly accounted for and be responsible for

the same when in-charge of fire appliances or equipments. In case of any loss or damage

of articles or equipments, uniform clothing, etc. he shall immediately report to his next

senior officer about the same.

(e) To keep his superiors acquainted with all matters coming to his knowledge affecting the

Fire Station staff or the general business of the Fire Service Department.

Duties of Driver/Operator

(a) To be available at the station to which he is posted, while on duty.

(b) To obey implicitly all orders of his superiors and exact the strictest obedience and civility

from those serving under him if any.

(c) To be responsible for the proper upkeep and mechanical condition, maintenance and

26

movements of the vehicles and pumps under his charge. He shall also be jointly responsible

with the Leading fireman for the proper maintenance and stowing of equipments and gears

that are carried on the fire appliances or kept at the fire Station.

(d) To test at least twice a day, the fire appliances in his charge to make sure that the same

are in serviceable condition and to record the dame with the man on station duty. To report

any defects immediately that he may come across to the Leading fireman in-charge and

to the man on station duty.

(e) To keep an inventory of all articles and equipments under his charge and to maintain a

record of time at work, mileage, petrol and oil consumption etc.

Duties of Fireman

(b) To be available at the station to which he is posted, while on duty.

(c) To obey implicitly all orders of his superiors and hold himself in readiness to carry out al

duties as may be assigned to him by his superiors obediently, smartly and efficiently.

(d) To keep himself and his quarters, if provided, neat and clean.

(e) To devote whole of his time and attention to the fire Service Department while on duty.

(f) To set example to others by sobriety, cleanliness, promptitude, civility and general attention

to his duty.

(g) To be responsible for keeping the station premises. Such as appliance room, offices, drill

yard, watch room, workshop, dormitory, drill tower, hose drying tower, and neat and

clean by washing when necessary and appliances, equipments, gears, etc. clean and tidy.

(h) To keep himself alert to attend to fires, special services, fire drills, etc. the shortest possible

time on the alarm being sounded.

(i) To carry out duties that may be assigned to him from time to time, to time, and be responsible

jointly and severally to the Leading fireman of the fire Units for the care, appearance,

scrupulous cleanliness of the unit and all equipments therewith correct, upkeep, storage

and maintenance thereof.

(j) To carry out duties that may be assigned to him from time to time, and be responsible

jointly and severally to the Leading fireman of the Fire Units for the care, appearance,

scrupulous cleanliness of the unit and all equipments the with, correct, upkeep, storage and

maintenance thereof.

(k) To assist Driver/Operator in the proper maintenance of equipments and gears of the vehicles,

perform guard duties, workshop duties, control room and watch room duties, duties of

office.

Medical Standards for Firemen

1. Personnel of the Fire Services including officer should have a high degree of physical

efficiency and fitness in view of their arduous duties under adverse conditions. For this

purpose, fire service personnel may be classified into operational and non-operational

categories.

2. The non-operational categories are those whose duties are supervisory and organizational,

27

and as such are not required to have the same physical efficiency standards as the operational

category. Directors. Chief Fire Officer. Deputy Chief Fire Officers and Divisional Fire

Officers would be classed into this category.

3. The operational categories would be those who are actively involved in fire-fighting duties

and would comprise of Station Officers/Supervisors/Foremen. Sub Officers, Leading

Firemen, Firemen fire Operators and such-like equivalent categories.

4. Certain other categories of staff in the fire service like Drives. Mechanics and similar

personnel. Who are normally employed on duties like control room-operators drives of

fire tenders, workshops and such like duties are like control room-operators, drivers of

fire tenders, workshops and such like duties are not fundamentally involved in actual fire

fighting duties like climbing to high-rise buildings rescue operations and such-like highly

strenuous duties and therefore may not require stringent physical efficiency standards.

They however do constitute an active component of the fire-fighting teak and will have to

take a hand in fire fighting operations.

5. All fire services personnel must be physically active. Senior officers even though normally

non- operational must be in a position to set a good example to their firemen. To this

extent, they should all be subjected to an annual medical examination, to check for organic

disease and physical disabilities. To ensure that they remain physically fit. They should be

subjected to the age-height-weight norms accepted as standards.

6. It is assumed that during recruitment to the fire services only those who do not have any

organic disease congenital defects and physical disabilities are accepted into the service.

Their height standards should be at least 5’ 3” to 5’ 8”, depending upon the area of

recruitment. Their chest easements should be 32”—35 with a minimum expansion of 2 %

“ 3”. Their eye-sight should be normally 6/6 and they should be tested for color blindness.

A standard of 6/9 with glasses may be accepted for older hands who are already in service.

They may however, have to be relegated to maintenance tasks as opposed to actual fire-

fighting and rescue operations, because spectacles are an impediment to active operations.

7. Certain data has been evolved as a result of live studies by the Defense Institute of Fire

Research and are summarized as under: -

(a) The fire fighting staff may not be fit for strenuous duties after 50 years of age.

(b) When the crew are composed of all aged personnel i.e. above 47 years, their

efficiency for fire- fighting operations, is at least 25 per cent below that of the crew

composed of a lower age-group.

(c) The crew up to the age-group of 40 years, are able to perform fire-drills efficiently.

In fact, crew composed of age-group 25-26 years took slightly more time than

the crew of higher average of 2 years of service to their credit and therefore; lesser

experience and practice than the older group.

(d) After 40 years of age, clinical abnormalities occur. This was recorded as 3 percent

of the age group upto 50 years and rose to 13 percent between 51-55 years and

33 per cent beyond 55 years. In other words, lI3” of the fire-fighting staff beyond

55 years, suffer from some form of clinical abnormality.

8. The Fire Service would therefore, have to evolve a system for early retirement and alternative

28

employment, as a result of deterioration in the physical standards for firemen, applicable

primarily, for classes of Station Officers and below. It would be the responsibility of the

Director of Fire Service to ensure that only those who are physically fit are employed in

fire fighting and rescue operations and maintain their firemen in a fit condition by devising

suitable physical activities and training, during their service career.

29

Chapter - VI

Famous Case Studies

Inter National Case Studies

1-MGM Grand fire

The MGM Grand fire occurred on November 21, 1980 at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino

(now Bally’s Las Vegas) in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. The fire killed 85 people, most through

smoke inhalation.[1] The tragedy remains the worst disaster in Nevada history, and the third-worst

hotel fire in modern U.S. history, after the 1946 Winecoff Hotel fire in Atlanta that killed 119

people and the Dupont Plaza Hotel, San Juan, Puerto Rico fire on December 31, 1986, in which

97 perished.

Bally’s, previously called the MGM Grand at the time of the fire. The current MGM Grand is at

a different location. At the time of the fire, approximately 5,000 people were in the hotel and

casino, a 26-story luxury resort with more than 2,000 hotel rooms. Just after 7:00 on the morning

of November 21, 1980, a fire broke out in a restaurant known as The Deli. The Clark County

Fire Department was the first agency to respond. Other agencies that responded included the

North Las Vegas Fire Department, Las Vegas Fire & Rescue and the Henderson Fire Department.

UH-1N (Huey) and CH-3E (Jolly Green Giant) helicopters from the 1st Special Operations Wing

out of Hurlburt Field, FL (which were deployed to Nellis AFB to participate in Red Flag ’80) were

the main part of a helicopter rescue effort that pulled 1000 people from the roof of the MGM

Grand. Smoke and fire spread through the building, killing 84 people and injuring 650, including

guests, employees and 14 firefighters. While the fire primarily damaged the second floor casino

and adjacent restaurants, most of the deaths were on the upper floors of the hotel, and were

caused by smoke inhalation. Openings in vertical shafts (elevators and stairwells) and seismic

joints allowed toxic smoke to spread to the top floor.

The disaster led to the general publicizing of the fact that during a building fire, smoke inhalation

is a more serious threat than flames. Seventy-five people died from smoke inhalation and carbon

monoxide poisoning, four from smoke inhalation alone, three from burns and smoke inhalation,

only one one person died from burns alone, and one person died from massive skull trauma,

caused by jumping from a high window.[1]

Cause

The fire was caused by an electrical ground fault inside a wall soffit. The wiring inside the wall was

used to power a refrigeration unit for a food display cabinet in the deli. The vibration of the machine

caused the wires to rub against each other, and the friction-damaged wires arced and caused a

fire, which was detected hours later by a hotel employee. The fire spread to the lobby, fed by

wallpaper, PVC piping, glue, and plastic mirrors, racing through the casino floor at a rate of 15–

19 ft (4.6–5.8 m) per second until a massive fireball blew out the main entrance along The Strip.

Seven people died in the casino. The burning material created toxic fumes and smoke, which

caused the majority of the deaths.

Due to faulty smoke dampers within the ventilation duct network, the toxic fumes circulated throughout

the hotel’s air circulation system, accelerating the spread of the poisonous air.

Most deaths occurred in the stairwells, where the doors locked behind each person as the only

30

open doors in the stairwell were on the roof and on the ground floor. Most of the victims died from

smoke inhalation, many of them in their sleep.

The fire was confined to the casino and restaurant areas. The hotel was equipped with a fire

sprinkler system that performed properly by keeping the fire out of that section of the building.

The area with the most fire prevention was in the money counting area, not in individual rooms

or on the casino floor. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) studies show that in this fire

the hotel occupants did not exhibit panic behavior. Instead, many took rational steps to preserve

their lives. Examples of this include putting towels around doors (to block out smoke), notifying

other occupants, offering refuge in their rooms, and using wet towels for their faces.

Sprinkler rule exceptions

The casino and restaurants were not protected by a fire sprinkler system because they were 0=

he fire broke out in The Deli the restaurant, no longer open 24 hours per day, was closed and

unoccupied.[2]

Aftermath

The hotel was repaired and improved, including the addition of fire sprinklers and an automatic

fire alarm system throughout the property, and sold to Bally’s Entertainment, which changed the

name to Bally’s Las Vegas. Similar upgrades were also made to the nearly identical property (now

the Grand Sierra Resort) in Reno, Nevada. The tower in which 85 people died is still operating

as part of the hotel today. A second tower, unaffected by the fire, opened in 1981. The present

MGM Grand hotel-casino was built just to the south, near the northeast corner of Las Vegas

Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue

On February 10, 1981, just 90 days after the MGM fire, another fire broke out at the Las Vegas

Hilton.[3] Because of the two incidents, there was a major reformation of fire safety guidelines and

codes.

National Case Studies

2-Fire breaks out in Ahmedabad’s hotel Courtyard Marriott, fire NOC canceled,

Ahmedabad, 31 March, 2011

A five- star hotel Courtyard Marriott in Ahmedabad caught fire and the fire could not be controlled

since its fire safety system was not working properly. Gravitational water flow was available; the

water lifting system was not available. If the sprinkler system worked then the fire could be controlled

and limited to a place in minutes.

3-Mumbai Terrorist Attack

Mumbai, the commercial capital of India, came under a heinous terrorist attack on November 26,

2008. The terrorist attacks took place at many locations, especially at CST Railway Station, the

leopard café, Taj hotel, Oberoi Trident Hotel, and Nariman House. 165 persons lost their lives

and 304 were injured. Among the civilian killed were 26 from the other countries.

This paper consists, of details about the journey of the terrorists to Mumbai, India, how they plan,

how they attacked, where they targeted, what are the evidence gathered so far, how they are

connected, how they have prepared themselves, and what latest technology they used etc. What

India has learned the lessons of that attack. Where India’s security forces may still lack the equipment

and training to fend off a similar attack. Where is a gap between what India’s government promises

31

about beefed-up security and what it is actually able to deliver? This paper offer many valuable

lessons for public safety and security leaders. We tread lightly to avoid any notion of opportunism,

however, as dedicated public safety communications professionals, the Mumbai attacks reveal the

fundamental importance that a real time, community-wide incident based emergency communications

sharing platform can play in effective emergency preparedness and response.

Ten terrorist were involved in the attack. Nine were killed in the operations one was captured

alive. Initially the group consisted of 32 persons. They were also learned to imparted basic

knowledge of firearms. Ammunition, grenades and explosives, later they were taught to handle

different devices and also how to fabricate explosive devices. They were also trained In techniques

to counter interrogation and tolerate pain, besides they were indoctrinated to become suicide

attackers. They were equipped by GPS phone and satellite phone. The satellite phone has yielded

several telephone numbers that links the terrorists to top functionaries.

Targets

CST railway station,

CST railway station is the headquarters of Central Railways. More than 3.5 million passengers

pass through the station every day.

Leopold café and bar,

The Leopold café and Bar, established in 1871, is a popular watering hole and is frequented by

foreigners as well as Indians. Ten persons were killed and many injured.

Taj Mahal Hotel,

The Taj Mahal hotel, constructed in 1903, is a heritage building and an icon in Mumbai. It Has

two wings, the heritage wing with 290 rooms and the Taj Towers with 275 rooms.

The Oberoi- Trident Hotel, The hotel has two wings, one named Oberoi and other Trident,

together they have 877 rooms. In this attack on the Oberoi- Trident, 33 persons were killed.

CST Railway Station

Nariman house is a five storied building, which had been purchased two years ago by an orthodox

Jewish organization called Chabad Liberation Movement of Hasidic Jews. It was renamed as

Chabad House. A powerful IED explosion blew away the wall at the rear of Nariman House.

During the operations, the police rescued 14 persons from Chabad House. The NSG pressed

helicopters into service and landed commandoes on the terrace of Chabad house.

The Indian government’s response to the Mumbai attacks highlighted several key weaknesses in

the country’s general counterterrorism and threat-mitigation structure

Role of fire Services

On November 26, 2008, the Mumbai Fire Brigade faced its greatest challenge, as terrorists attacked

multiple high-visibility targets within the south city centre. The attacks took place in buildings which

were frequented by foreign tourists, especially American and British citizens. In a well-planned

series of simultaneous attacks, the terrorists used automatic weapons, hand grenades and C4

explosive with the intention of murdering as many as possible, taking hostages and igniting fires

within the structures. The largest blaze was determined to be the one at the Taj Mahal Hotel,

32

whose upper floors were well-inflamed.

With no sprinkler systems or interior standpipes, the fire-suppression effort was limited to a master

stream attack from aerial devices such as the Bronto Skylift. Firefighting efforts were hampered

by gunfire aimed at firefighters, who bravely remained at their posts both atop the aerial platforms

and at the ground level. Many dozens of rescues and removals took place using additional aerial

devices.

“They [the terrorists] kept setting the rooms on fire while fighting the commandos. Fire fighters

would wait for an assurance from the commandos before going in,However, the sound of firing

did not make it easy for them, “It was not easy to work in such conditions. There is a risk while

fighting fires but in this case there was the added risk of bullets,”.

Role of Media

Media was very active from the beginning and they were providing live telecast of the incident.

It was realized after a long time that the possibility of outside information being conveyed to terrorist

by there mentors outside was possible. An element of dialogue in telecast was introduced

subsequently.

Actual quantum of damage by this process may not be easy to estimate. But lesson were learnt

from media to be kept under control and not to allow terrorist the added of external information

to them.

Use of Surveillance Camera

The surveillance camera mounted at strategic location can certainly provide vital clues. There is

a dire need to now mega cities adequately equipped with such facilities to help investigation,

crimes/theft etc. Need of surveillance, CCTV, recording etc for public transport, main traffic signal

crossings, supervision of building become essential.

Tatkane Deputy CFO mentioned 40 m ladder with a bullet proof jacket to reach, terrorist were

noted to fight and look for survivors waiting to be rescued. Deputy CFO Kargujrikars was also

similar supportively on other process 1200 men were rescued, 200 fire participated in rescue/

fire fighting, two bullet proof jackets were used by fire service men. 6 ALPS used in the operation.

Building had fire alarm system compartment and wet wiser protection. The building did not have

sprinkler system. The top floors was set on fire flours could be seen belong from roof. The roof

impact was having story lights and floor below had a cut out and corridors rectangular assured

it.

The top floors were set on fire, flames which could be seen belong fire proof. The roof impact

was having stay lights and floor below had a cut out and rectangular corridors around it. The light

filling got involved in fire and burned off allowing heat and smoke to escapes in to atmosphere.

Thin partition prevented spread of smoke to slot of the building through corridors.

Limitations of Municipal Fire and Emergency Services.

Firemen were slow to respond. They failed to coordinate their actions with both the local police

and national paramilitary forces and suffered from inadequate equipment. These limitations

underscore the poor quality of India’s municipal services even in a major, bustling, economically

vibrant city such as Mumbai.

33

Intelligence Failures.

Indian intelligence officials received prior warnings both from their own sources and from the

United States that a major attack was probable, but lack of speci-ficity and uncertainty about the

threat windows seemed to have prevented specific responses.

There appears to have been little coordination between the central security agencies—the Research

and Analysis Wing (R&AW) and the Intelligence Bureau (IB)—and the local police in Bombay.

Although the former are known to have intercepted “chatter” about a possible LeT seaborne

attack on Mumbai, it is not clear whether the Mumbai police (or the Indian coast guard) received

the information. At any rate, they did not act upon it. This issue highlights theuniversal problem of

rapidly disseminating covert intelligence for actionable purposes.

Gaps in Coastal Surveillance.

The attacks highlighted India’s inability to effectively monitor its coastline—a condition that is

common to many littoral states in both the developing and the developed world. Although R&AW

had information (apparently secured from intercepts) about a possible terrorist landing by sea,

whatever measures were taken proved insuf- ficient to monitor maritime traffic in and around

Mumbai. This failure would seem to reflect the coast guard’s shortage of equipment for coastal

surveillance: fewer than 100 boats for more than 5,000 miles of shoreline and minimal aviation

assets.

Inadequate “Target Hardening.”

The metal detectors at the CRT were of questionable reliability, and, although the Railway Protection

Force (RPF) officers were armed, their weapons were relatively antiquated and in short supply

(one for every two officers). The attack on the railway terminus also underscored the limitations

of the RPF in terms of concerted counterterrorism: Although the force has the ability to fend off

common criminals, it is completely lacking in training to deal with a well-orchestrated terrorist

attack.

Incomplete Execution of Response Protocols.

Although local police contingents (including the Anti-Terrorism Squad, or ATS) responded relatively

quickly, they lacked both the training to set up appropriate command posts and dragnets for

sealing off the attack sites. In particular, they failed to cordon off the attack sites along a wide

perimeter to contain the terrorists. Because the attacks were at multiple locations, police did not

have the ability to cordon the area. It was the terrorists’ purpose, based on previous experience,

not to give the police a containable event—a key lesson learned from what the terrorists did.

Response Timing Problems.

Local contingents of the army arrived at the scene of the attacks at 02:50 hours, a full five hours

after the first shots had been fired. The first “special response” team, the Marine Commandos

(Marcos), arrived a little later, but the unit was pulled out before engaging any of the terrorists.

It was not until 08:50 hours that the elite National Security Guard (NSG, or “Black Cat Commandos,”

which are modeled on the pattern arrived. Initial search-and-rescue operations were mounted

some 30 minutes later, and it is only at that point that the terrorists could seriously be considered

engaged. The slow response of the NSG is especially noteworthy given its mandate to act as the

country’s premier rapid-reaction force. This underscores two main organizational and logistical

problems. First, the unit is headquartered south of Delhi and lacks bases anywhere else in the

34

country;6 second, the NSG has no aircraft of its own and cannot count on dedicated access to

Indian Air Force aircraft in an emergency. The only plane that was available to transport the 200

commandos to Mumbai was a Russian IL-76 transport carrier; however, it was in Chandigarh,

which is 165 miles north of Delhi. The pilot had to be awakened, a crew assembled, and the plane

fueled. The aircraft did not reach Delhi until 02:00 hours (five hours after the attacks began and

most of the killing had been done) and took roughly 3.5 hours to reach Mumbai (compared to

just two hours for a commercial jet). According to various counterterrorism experts, any rapid-

reaction force must reach the scene of a terrorist incident no later than 30–60 minutes after it has

commenced. In Mumbai, nearly 10 hours elapsed.

Inadequate Counterterrorism Training and Equipment for the Local Police.

To effectively manage a terrorist incident, first responders need to have appropriate equipment and

training to neutralize or at least contain the terrorists. However, the Mumbai attacks graphically

illustrated how ill prepared the Maharashtra police were to handle a major terrorist incident. Many

police officers remained passive, seemingly because they were outgunned by the terrorists. The

bulletproof vests that were available could not withstand AK-47 or AK-56 rounds (two batches

had failed tests in 2001 and 2004, and the head of the ATS, Chief Karkare, died after bullets

penetrated the vest he was wearing). Many officers had only been issued 5-mm-thick plastic

protectors that were suitable for riot control but not for engaging terrorists. Helmets were of World

War II vintage and not designed for modern combat, and most of the responding detachments

involved in the incidents were carrying .303 bolt-action rifles of the sort used by the British Army

in the 1950s.8

Flawed Hostage-Rescue Plan.

In several respects, the NSG hostage rescue plans for the Taj Mahal and Trident-Oberoi Hotels

suffered from serious defects. The unit’s senior command failed to set up an operational command

center to coordinate the mission, and the storm teams went in “blind” with no understanding of

the basic layout of either of the two buildings. Both hotels were designated “clear” when terrorists

were still alive; room-to-room sweeps were hampered by insufficient intelligence on the numbers

of hostages being held and the profile of the militants involved; and the possibility for a surprise

raid under cover of darkness was effectively negated by the absence of suitable equipment, such

as night-vision goggles and thermal imaging systems.

Poor Strategic Communications and Information Management.

Throughout the crisis,the central government and security forces failed to project an image of

control, with the words “chaos” and “paralysis” used repeatedly to describe events as they

unfolded.11 So badly did officials handle communications that an unprecedented public interest

lawsuit has been filed against the government charging that it failed to discharge its constitutional

duty to protect the country’s citizenry and uphold their right to life. More seriously, breaches of

basic information security protocols provided the terrorists with vital operational intelligence. Major

criticism was directed at a cabinet minister on the first day of the crisis, after he announced that

200 NSG commandos were to be deployed in the area in two hours. Not only did this alert the

terrorists as to when a hostage rescue mission might occur, it also effectively confirmed that no

forward operating units had yet been mobilized. Since the attack, the Indian government has

announced a number of reforms aimed at addressing these various shortcomings. India’s parliament

has taken steps to make some of these reforms a reality. On December 17, India’s lower house

(Lok Sabha) approved new anti-terror legislation; it was approved by the upper house (Rajya

Photos of Disaster Management Workshop at Confidence Foundation

35

Sabha) the next day. The new Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act provides new powers to the

security services, including the ability to hold suspects for six months without charges. It also

makes provisions to establish a National Investigative Agency that will be responsible for investigating

terrorism and gathering and processing intelligence. Some of these provisions (such as lengthy

detentions without charge) have drawn domestic criticism.Following the 1999 incursion by Pakistani

paramilitary forces in the Kargil-Dras sectors of Kashmir, the Indian government vowed to institute

reforms intended to make future incursions less likely. Many of these changes were proposed in

the Kargil Review Commission

The evidences gathered so far

Rifles, pistols, ammunition, grenades. Mobile telephones, GPS sets etc recovered from the terrorists

from the scenes of the crimes.

Ten improvised explosive devices were given to the terrorist. Seven had exploded and three were

recovered and defused later. The three devices are similar and bear the unmistakable signature of

having been made by the same individual or same team at the same time. Each IED weighed

approximately eight kilogram and each contained 4-5 kilogram tightly packed black greasy RDX.

9 mm pistols that were recovered from different scenes of the crimes. The hand grenades that

were denoted and that were found unexploded. The satellite phone recovered from the fishing

trawler was used to call a number of telephones. GPS set was recovered from the fishing trawler.

A email claiming responsibility for the Mumbai attack was sent to the media by a hitherto unknown

organization styled as “Deccan Mujahideen”.

Even while the terrorists had occupied the target building and the security forces were engaging

them, the terrorists were in contact with their controllers/ handlers over mobile telephones.

Each terrorist carried pickle, diesel container, Match box, detergent powder, tissue paper, wheat

paper, Mountain dew bottle, Dental cream, shaving cream, spray paint, milk powder packet, floor

cleaning brush, towel, jacket and many small other things.

Conclusion

· In the wake of the late November 2008 events, it was revealed that Mumbai’s firefighters

have poor personal protective gear.

· Security and Police official were poorly trained. They need to trained with latest technology

and equipment.

· Communication system should improved

36

Chapter VII

Conclusion

Unwanted fires pose major risk to the safety to life and property in a built environment. India

suffers a colossal loss of over Rs 5000 million per annum on account of property alone. In addition

to this several thousand lives are lost due to fires. Combined with the introduction of advanced

systems of fire detection and suppression, there is a need to develop predictive tools for estimating

the environment and for measuring the performance of the fire safety systems.

Fire engineering, or fire safety engineering, is the application of the engineering principles to all

aspects of fire safety. In much the same way as a structural engineer wOill design a building to

withstand various loads and conditions a fire engineer will look at hazard, risk and the performance

of materials, buildings and the behavior of people. The result of a fire engineering approach will

often lead to flexible alternatives to the code or prescriptive route, especially when designing unusual

or difficult buildings. Fire engineering can successfully remove obstacles to innovative building

design and provide an opportunity for the architect to create the fire safe environment by introducing

new systems or developing a better understanding of existing systems. The performance based

code allows fire engineering design to be used. Often the engineer himself finds difficulties in the

application of the available science. Engineers are using fire models as part of the engineering

design process. The engineer certainly has no storage of models that can be used to assist him with

his design and the problems are often how to decide which model to use? It is the absence of such

facts that often leaves the designer more confused than confident in fire modeling. This lack of

understanding, but more importantly the lack of understanding by regulators and enforcement

authorities represents a significant obstacle to the acceptance of modeling, which is so fundamental

to fire safety engineers. Greater acceptability of fire safety engineering requires investment in

education of all parties involved in the design, construction, maintenance and approval of buildings.

Since a most important principle of successful fire extinction is to attack and out break immediately,

in incipient stage it is imperative that any device which can detect a fire automatically and then help

to extinguish it with a minimum of fire loss or keep it under control & prevent further spreading

will prove great value. Automatic sprinkler systems, using water as the extinguishing medium have

been universally adopted for this purpose. This type of apparatus has been in use for over a

hundred years basically and automatic sprinkler installation comprises a system of pipes erected

at or near the ceiling of each floor of a building and connected through controlling valves to one

or more water supplies. At intervals in the pipe work, at varying distances according to the

classification of the premises, are sealed outlets called sprinkler heads. These contain a device

whereby a rise in temperature to a predetermined limit causes the sprinkler to open and water to

be discharged in the form of a spray over an area of the floor below the sprinkler. The sprinklers

are so spaced that, in the event of two or more heads operative simultaneously, the area sprayed

by each sprinkler overlaps that sprayed by its neighbor, thus leaving no part of the floor unprotected.

The Operation of the head leads to the opening of a valve and causes and alarm bell to ring( and

in some installations a direct call to fire brigade), so drawing attention to the outbreak of fire.

Recommendation

a) Foreseeability of Fire: Fire is a foreseeable occurrence. It must be dealt with on the

37

same terms and with the same resources that are committed to production, marketing, or

any other business activity. The fire problem can not be ignored. To do so is a gamble,

and gamblers eventually come up losers.

b) Insurance: Insurance is not a solution to the fire problem. It financial Band-Aid intended

to help heal the wounds to the bottom line of a company after a fire loss. It cannot be used

to recover all of the direct and indirect losses from a fire, such as lost customers.

c) Building and Fire Codes: Building codes and National Building codes are absolute

minimums and do not reflect the special fire protection needs of a specific industrial facility.

Reliance solely on a code or standard to determine the level of protection for a facility is

the same as entrusting the future of the company to a stranger who has no vested interest

in the continued profitability of the operation.

d) Effect of Fire:Industrial and commercial fires damage more than the bottom line of a

facility. Beyond the physical damage incurred and the loss of profits and customers, a

major fire can have a devastating effect on the employees and the neighboring community.

e) Fire Protection Features and Procedures: Money invested in the fire protection

features is an investment intended to ensure the continued operation and profitability of the

company. A company cannot produce anything, if the building burns down.

f) Automatic Sprinkler Protection: The best protection available for any type of building

or occupancy is a properly designed, installed, and maintained automatic sprinkler system.

Automatic sprinkler protection must be matched to the hazard it is expected to protect.

Most importantly, an improperly designed sprinkler system is the same as no sprinkler

system at all.

g) Procedure for Handling Impairments: Fire protection equipment, such as automatic

sprinklers, are of no value if they are impaired (out of service) when the fire occurs. Facilities

must have a comprehensive impairment handling procedure for tracking and handling

impairments to fire protection equipment. The procedure should include the provision of

a fire watch, the shutting down of hazardous operations in the affected areas, and even

shutting down the facility if the impairment affects a large portion of the facility’s fire protection.

h) Fire Walls and Fire Barrier Walls: Large un-divided areas are an invitation to disaster.

Properly designed fire walls and fire barrier walls or other forms of fire cutoffs should be

used to sub-divide a facility into manageable fire areas or to halt the potential spread of

fire from the area of origin.

i) Employee Training: Buildings equipped with automatic sprinkler protection and other

protection features burn down on a regular basis because the effectiveness of the protection

is comprised by the actions or inactions of the people in the facility. Every employee should

be instructed to immediately sound the alarm when there are indications of a fire. Big fires

always start out small; therefore, summoning assistance immediately is important.

j) Planning : Every industrial facility must have an effectively trained fire brigade that operates

under a comprehensive pre-emergency plan. Emergency planning must also include the

public fire department, so that fire fighters are familiar with the features of the facility and

how to utilize them most effectively.

38

k) Automatic Fire Detection: Automatic fire detection is not a substitute for automatic

sprinkler protection. Fire detectors do nothing to suppress a fire. If they are not installed

in conjunction with automatic sprinklers or some other type of fire suppression system,

they only guarantee an audience for the fire.

l) Building Materials: Combustible construction materials should be avoided in industrial

and commercial buildings. The fire load in an industrial or commercial setting is usually

substantial without the additional fire loading contributed by combustible building materials.

m) Housekeeping : Good housekeeping practices are essential for a fire-safe facility.

n) Hazard Analysis : Industrial and commercial facilities must have some type of hazard

analysis process to determine the effect that new or revised operations will have on the

protection of the facility.

An operating sprinkler system should never be shut down until it has been positively determined

that the fire has been extinguished. Even then, charged hose lines should be maintained in the area

to protect against a potential rekindle, and personnel should be stationed at each shut sprinkler

valve to quickly re-open the valve should a rekindle occur.

39

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42

Profile

Professor Dr. Neelam TikkhaMA( English), MBA, Team Building ( XLRI), Ph.D ( American Literature ), TEFL (US Florida Tampa),

MMV, RTM Nagpur University, Nagpur, India.

Supervisor for PhD (English)

Winner of British Council International Anecdote Writing Competition.

Certified by Cambridge University as an English Expert

President – CFTRA- Global, an interactive platform for teachers and trainers.

Editor- Multidisciplinary International Journal

Director, Confidence Foundation an NGO working for education of deprived and adults.

Corporate trainer for MNC’s like World Trade Centre, ONGC, HPCL, Mercedez , HUL, CIPLA,

Visaka Industries, Acer, Space wood , PEE VEE TEX, HPCL, Blow Plast , and a number of

organizations.

Examiner for Cambridge ESOL Exams. Writer of 28 e- books on Communication Skills, Soft

Skills and Essays for International Exams and Disaster Management. Taught at UK.

Key Note presenter for a number of international Conferences and seminars around the globe.

Won several awards for best paper presentation.

Conducted Soft Skills and Communication training at various engineering, medical and management

institutes like YCCE , DMIMS, RKNEC, PCE , Aravali , IILM, IBS, Magnus, GH Raisoni,

Bharat Petroleum Ltd.

Interviewed on All India Radio and TV.

Written a number of books and participated in over 55 international conferences.

Ph.D.American Literature( Received United States Information Services grant for studying ). MBA(

XLRI)M.A. (English )Post graduate Diploma in Journalism and Mass Media Communication

(Delhi)Diploma in Creative Writing in English (Delhi)

American Civilization Course Sponsored by United States Information Services.

Certified trainer for teaching Communication by TESOL (US)

Impressions

The ‘Leadership and Team Excellence’ workshop was highly interactive. The faculty was

very much focused and effective. Her delivery was excellent and she was able to involve

each participant. Course contents were very excellent meeting our job requirement.

The communication workshop was very enriching. Now onwards I will be very confident

and expressive while making presentations and writing e- mails

Shashi Vaidya

HR Unilever

43

I remember everything of what you had taught me 10 years ago.

Gopal Bisa

Unilever

It was a very good experience . Communication workshop was excellent . Very interactive

and highly learning experience. Thanks for the effort taken by you.

Dilip Joshi

Space Wood

Communication workshop was extremely good .

Dr. Sanjay Thakur

ESCORTS

I liked the workshop because the way of training is very different.

Sheel Ghule

IIPL

The workshop was interactive and done in a very creative way.

Dr. Neelam Tikkha is an excellent trainer.

Dr. M L Goel

Univ. of Florida, US

Training Areas

1. Business Communication Skills (Written, Spoken and Behavior)

2. Intercultural communication

3. NLP to improve efficiency at work place

4. Emotional intelligence

5. Coping with Night Shifts

6. Voice and Accent

7. Presentation Skills

8. Leadership

9. Body Language

10. E-mail Etiquettes

11. Public Speaking

12. Group Discussion

44

13. Customer Effectiveness

14. Negotiation Skills Leadership

15. Transactional Analysis

16. Stress Management (includes Healthy Living)

17. Building Positive attitude

18. Interview and Interviewing Techniques

19. Change management

20. Dinner table and Cocktail Etiquettes

21. Time Management

22. Memory Improvement

23. Inculcating Values

24. Professional Dressing

25. Creativity

26. Team Building

Contact Details:

Confidence Foundation

3A-1 & 42 A-1,Vrindavan,

Crorepati Lane,

173, Civil Lines, Nagpur-440001, INDIA

e-mail: confidencefoundation@yahoo.com

neelam.tikkha@gmail.com

Tel:0712 -2520741, 2521796

Cell: 09422145467