Ed Galea
12 Sept 2001

Twelve years after the collapse of the WTC towers, the far-reaching impact of the attacks is still being felt when it comes to the design of new high-rise buildings across the world.

FSEG research is still on-going and the data we have collected, both on the mechanics of large-scale evacuation, and on the human behaviour issues, is being shared across the world, as a valuable international resource.

Using our buildingEXODUS evacuation software, we analysed the evacuation dynamics of the events of 9/11 and also explored what may have happened if the buildings had been fully occupied. From this work, we concluded that, for buildings above a critical population and height, stairs alone were not sufficient for safely evacuating the entire population.

Following this work, FSEG went on to explore the use of lifts for evacuation in high-rise buildings.  We wanted to better understand the choices people make in deciding to use a lift/elevator as part of their evacuation route in an emergency.  Using the knowledge gained from this research, we developed advanced human behaviour models, which simulate human behaviour in selecting to use a lift or stairs to evacuate, and if electing to use a lift, how long they would be prepared to wait for the lift before using the stairs.   This model has been incorporated into the buildingEXODUS evacuation simulation software which now has the capability to explore the impact of lifts on high-rise building evacuation — but not only the mechanical aspects of using lifts, most importantly the human dynamics aspects.

Using the buildingEXODUS software, FSEG simulated a series of high-rise building evacuation scenarios in which the agents could elect to use lifts or stairs or a combination of both.  This research suggests that combined use of stairs and lifts produce better evacuation times than simply using lifts alone.  What’s more, if complex human behaviour is included in the evacuation analysis, the improved evacuation efficiency promised by lifts is not fully realised.  This is because some people will not want to utilise lifts and opt for stairs, while other people who attempt to utilise lifts are not prepared to wait more than a few minutes.   We know stairs alone are not sufficient for full building evacuations in large high-rise buildings.  Since 9/11 there has been a trend to use specially designed elevators for evacuation in large high-rise buildings. But elevators, even fire safe elevators, raise the complex issue of human behaviour, and we know from our studies that many people do not trust using them, or will simply not wait for them, in an emergency.  This is why it is important to have the capacity to utilise both lifts and stairs.

It is vital to take a holistic view of evacuation when designing new high-rise buildings.  When it comes to elevators, this means not just the mechanical issues of using elevators to evacuate people, but the whole issue of human behaviour, and this is what we have built into the buildingEXODUS evacuation model.  However, this is by no means the end of the story.  More work needs to be done to understand the complex human dynamics issues associated with high-rise building evacuation dynamics.

Our analysis of stair travel speeds of people in the WTC evacuation suggested that people were not walking as fast as engineers may have expected.  While our analysis suggested that the lower than expected travel speeds could be explained by the high crowd densities experienced on the stairs, it did bring into question whether the data that engineers have been using to characterise stair speed was out dated and inappropriate given the changes in population demographics in the 50 years since the data was first collected.  As a result, FSEG have started to collect human performance data for people ascending and descending stairs.  While still in the early stages of this work, some of the data that has already been collected suggests that stair walking speeds have indeed changed, at least for the younger demographic.

Twelve years on from 9/11, people need to guard against complacency. Evacuation drills and training always need to be taken extremely seriously, as successful evacuation depends in part on how quickly people respond. We found in our research that some people took many minutes to decide to evacuate the towers, while others didn’t know where the stairs were, for example. The attacks have also highlighted the need for better information systems in buildings, with proper instructions in an emergency, rather than just an alarm going off.

We hope that the insight we have gained into complex human behaviour issues in high-rise building evacuation since 9/11 will contribute to improving building design and evacuation procedures and so contribute to saving lives.

REFERENCES:

“The UK WTC 9/11 evacuation study: An overview of findings derived from first-hand interview data and computer modelling”, Galea, E.R., Hulse, L., Day, R. Siddiqui, A., and Sharp. G. Fire and Materials, Vol 36, pp501-521, 2012, DOI: 10.1002/fam.1070

“Investigating evacuation lift dispatch strategies using computer modelling”, Kinsey, M.J., Galea, E.R., and Lawrence, P.J.,  Fire and Materials, Vol 36, pp399-415, 2012, http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/fam.1086

“Human Factors Associated with the Selection of Lifts/Elevators or Stairs in Emergency and Normal Usage Conditions”, Kinsey, M.J., Galea, E.R., and Lawrence, P.J.  Fire Technology, 48, pp2-26, 2012, DOI: 10.1007/s10694-010-0176-7.

“Individual stair ascent and descent walk speeds measured in a Korean High-Rise Building”, Choi, Jun-Ho,  Galea, E.R.,  and Hong, Won-Hwa, To Appear in the Journal of Fire Protection Engineering 2013, published online 11 July 2013, http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1042391513492738

“The UK 9/11 evacuation study: Analysis of survivors’ recognition and response phase in WTC1”. McConnell, N.C.,  Boyce, K.E. Shields, J., Galea, E.R., Day, R.C. and Hulse. L.M.. Fire Safety Journal 45, pp 21—34, 2010, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.firesaf.2009.09.001.

“Investigating the Representation of Merging Behavior at the Floor—Stair Interface in Computer Simulations of Multi-Floor Building Evacuations”, Galea, E.R., Sharp, G., and Lawrence, P., Journal of Fire Protection Engineering, Vol. 18, No. 4, 291-316, 2008 http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1042391508095092.

“Approximating the Evacuation of the World Trade Center North Tower using Computer Simulation”, Galea, E.R, Sharp, G., Lawrence, P.J., Holden, R., Journal of Fire Protection Engineering, Vol 18 (2), 85-115, 2008. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1042391507079343

Questions are being raised as to how many people were in the nightclub at the time of the incident.  This will become an important issue as the inquiry into the disaster progresses as the level of club occupancy could be used as a factor in contributing to the severity of the disaster and hence in apportioning responsibility.  Another issue that has been raised is whether or not more exits would have made a material difference to the outcome. To examine these issues we can do some simple analysis based on a number of assumptions and what the media are currently reporting.

So what do we (think we) know about the Kiss fire incident according to accounts in the media:

1) The club has a floor area of 615 m².  However, it is not known how this breaks down to dance floor, bar, toilets, circulation space etc.

2) The maximum travel distance to the front door is reported as being 32m.

http://world.time.com/2013/01/29/focus-turns-to-brazilian-club-safety-after-fire/

3) The maximum legal occupancy of the club is reported as being 691 people.

4) The only available exit has a width of 3m.

http://g1.globo.com/rs/rio-grande-do-sul/tragedia-incendio-boate-santa-maria-entenda/platb

5) The club owner insists that there were only 600 to 700 people in the club at the time of the incident.  However, the band’s guitarist told media that there were between 1200 and 1300 people in the club at the time and the police have given the same estimate.  The owner suggests that the higher estimates are due to clubers cycling into and out of the club.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/01/31/nightclub-fire-that-killed-235-prompts-inspections-closures-night-spots-across/

6) It has now been reported that the band did in fact use flares during their show.  The flares were outdoor flares which are cheaper ($1.25 a piece) then indoor flares ($35 each).

http://world.time.com/2013/01/29/focus-turns-to-brazilian-club-safety-after-fire/

7) According to what I understand to be the fire certificate, the club is credited with having 2 emergency exits — hence 3 exits in total, one main and 2 emergency.  However, this is not clear from the article which later refers to these ‘emergency exits’ simply as ‘exits’, in which case the club may have been certified as having 2 exits, 1 main and 1 emergency exit. So it appears from the media accounts that the club was certified as having 3 or 2 exits — depending on the interpretation of the article.

http://g1.globo.com/rs/rio-grande-do-sul/noticia/2013/01/boate-informou-em-laudo-ter-duas-saidas-diz-brigada-militar.html

QUESTIONS:

In discussion with a Brazilian fire safety consultant based inSao Paulo, Dr Rodrigo Machado Tavares, Dr Tavares suggests that the local fire codes would require the Kiss nightclub to have:

– three exits,

– emergency lighting,

– emergency exit signage,

– an alarm system.

This answers many of the questions posed in my last blog (Yet Another Nightclub Tragedy — Grief tainted with anger, 29/01/13) however, it poses many serious questions concerning the licensing, inspection and enforcement process in Brazil.

Furthermore, it appears that the expired license has been reported as suggesting that the club had three (or at least two) exits.  Unless the missing exit or exits have been bricked up since the license was issued, or that the exit(s) were there but were locked or blocked during the incident and so could not be used, how could a license be issued stating that the club had three (or two) exits?  One has to ask if inspections of the club were ever performed.  If they were performed, how could an inspector fail to notice that two (or one) exits were missing?

Given that the nightclub had only a third of the legally required number of exits, one has to wonder whether this would have made a material difference to the outcome.

Concerning the number of people in the club, this is important as it is the manager’s responsibility to control the number of people in the club.  The manager suggests that the there were 700 people in the club, as allowed by the questionable ‘license’.  If there were 700 people in the club, this would be of benefit to the manager as it suggests overcrowding — his responsibility — would not have been a major factor and refocuses attention on the questionable fire license.  If there were 1200 people in the club, this deflects some degree of blame from the band — for allegedly starting the fire using flares — and for the code enforcement agency for permitting the license in the first place.

Is it likely that there were 1200 people in the Kiss Nightclub at the time of the incident?

SIMPLIFIED ANALYSIS:

Let’s do a simplified analysis on numbers of exits and number of people.  Note that this analysis is crude and a more thorough analysis would be required to establish the relevance of these key parameters.  The simplified analysis is dependent on a number of simplifying assumptions detailed below.

1) Assuming the 3m available exit width and a population of 1200 and 700, approximately how long would it have taken for the population to get out?

Let’s simplify the calculation and assume the population reacts immediately (zero response time) and let’s also assume that all the people are queued up at the exit ready to go.  Assuming a unit flow of 1.33 p/m/s (UK ADB) then the exit could sustain a flow of 3.99 p/s and it would require:

– at least 300 s for 1200 people to exit and

– at least 175 s for 700 people to exit.

2) How much time would be available for people to get out?  This is extremely difficult to estimate without doing a detailed analysis.  But let’s use the Rhode Island Nightclub fire as a rough guide.  After about 100 s conditions in the Station Nightclub were non-survivable. The floor area of the Station Nightclub was about 412 m² and so the Kiss nightclub is some 50% larger.  Based on this let’s assume that people had 50% longer to get out, making it 150 s for non-survivable conditions to develop.  This is admittedly a very crude estimation and may over estimate the amount of time available.

In 150 s, using the single available exit we could expect about 600 people to get out:

– generating a death toll of 100 people assuming there were 700 people in the club, as claimed by the manager,

– generating a death toll of 600 people assuming the band/authorities are correct and there were 1200 in the club.

Given the current death toll of 235, it is possible that there were 835 people in the club.  If correct, this would suggest that while the club was overcrowded, it is unlikely that there were as many people as suggested by the band/authorities.

A note of caution, remember, the assumptions that have been made are rather crude. The population is unlikely to have had zero response times, but evidence from the Rhode Island fire would suggest that in these types of situations, occupant response times are quite small of the order of a few seconds.  We can slightly improve these approximations by relaxing the zero response time assumption and assuming that the first people start to move in 10 s and that the closest people to the exit are located a third of the maximum distance (11m) and that the people located here move at 1.1 m/s.  This would add about 20 s to the estimated exit times OR reduce the available safe egress time by 20 s.  So let’s assume that we have 130 s to get out.

In 130 s, using the single available exit we could expect about 519 people to get out:

– generating a death toll of 181 people assuming there were 700 people in the club, as claimed by the manager,

– generating a death toll of 681 to be killed if the band/authorities are correct and there were 1200 in the club.

Given the current death toll of 235, it is possible that there were 754 people in the club.  This would shift the club occupancy even closer to that suggested by the nightclub owner.

We may also assume that the unit flow achieved by the exit was better than that prescribed in the UK regulations, which by their nature are conservative.  This would get more people out of the nightclub within the 130 s available time, increasing the size of the estimated population within the club.  However, in such situations, especially after the first few people have exited, the exit flow will become competitive rather than ordered, which will tend to reduce the exiting efficiency and hence the achieved unit flow rate.  In reality, the unit flow rate achieved by the exit will vary throughout the evacuation, being somewhat greater than that specified by the regulation at the start of the evacuation and being somewhat less towards the end of the evacuation.  Without undertaking a detailed analysis it is difficult to suggest a reasonable value for the unit flow rate, so for the purposes of this blog we will keep it as it is.

It is worth noting the following:

– if the average unit flow rate of the exit is greater than that used in these calculations, more people would have been able to exit in the available time and hence the estimate of the club occupancy would go up,

– if the average unit flow rate of the exit is less than that used in these calculations, fewer people would have been able to exit in the available time and hence the estimate of the club occupancy would go down.

Given the uncertainties I will stick to the initial estimates.

3) What would have happened if there were the legally required 3 exits in the club?  To answer this requires us to know the total available exit width.  Let’s assume that the club would have followed UK requirements.  An assembly space of more than 600 people would require 3 exits (as apparently does the local requirements).  Using BS 9999, the minimum total exit width for the 3 exits would be 4.3m.  Here we assume that all three exits have the same width.

If we make similar assumptions to that in (1) and in addition that all three exits were available and the population is equally divided between the three exits, then the combined flow would be 5.7 p/s and :

– 700 people would be able to exit in 123 s

– 835 people would be able to exit in 147 s

– 1200 people would be able to exit in 211 s

Assuming the same amount of time is available for safe egress i.e. 150 s, then:

– all 700 people would be able to safely evacuate, i.e. the legal occupancy would have been able to safely evacuate.

– all 835 people who are estimated to have been in the club would have managed to safely evacuate

– of the 1200 people, 855 would manage to get out, and the death toll would have been 345.

So these simplistic calculations suggest that if the club and the legally required minimum number of exits (3) with an exit width as specified by the BS 9999 and:

– the legal maximum population (700), then it is possible that everyone would have managed to evacuate before conditions in the club became non-survivable.

– if the population of the club was 835, then it is possible that everyone would have managed to evacuate before conditions in the club became non-survivable.  So even though the club was overcrowded on the night, it is possible that everyone would have managed to evacuate.

– if the population of the club was 1200, the population suggested by the band/authorities, then it is possible that 855 people would have managed to evacuate before conditions in the club became non-survivable and 345 people would have died.  So if the population was as high as 1200, even if the legally required exit capacity was provided it is unlikely that everyone would have managed to evacuate.

It has to be emphasised that these calculations are extremely crude, but they serve to demonstrate how important it is establish the correct number of people that were in the club at the time of the incident.  They also demonstrate that had the club had the required number of exits, it is possible that the death toll in this incident could have been significantly reduced.

To do a more thorough analysis on this incident would require fundamental data describing the club and the materials within the club, the number of people in the club and their distribution.  With this information it would be possible to undertake sophisticated fire and evacuation analysis of the type undertaken for the Rhode Island Nightclub fire.

Rhode Island Fire Simulation:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o197yeup1BQ&list=PLC82636C7790DE890&index=1

Rhode Island Coupled Fire and Evacuation Simulation:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmPOIriMiyU&list=PL482FD999D5793B82&index=1

Paper describing simulations: http://fseg.gre.ac.uk/fire/pub.asp

Paper 223. “Coupled Fire/Evacuation Analysis of the Station Nightclub Fire”. Galea E.R., Wang, Z., Veeraswamy, A., Jia, F.,Lawrence, P., and Ewer, J. Proceedings of 9th IAFSS Symposium Karlsruhe,Germany, 2008, ISNN 1817-4299, pp 465-476. DOI:10.3801/IAFSS.FSS.9-465

http://g1.globo.com/rs/rio-grande-do-sul/noticia/2013/01/conheca-vitimas-do-incendio-em-casa-noturna-em-santa-maria-rs.html

It is even more heartbreaking to learn that this tragic loss of life may have been needless and preventable.  As more details of this tragedy begin to emerge, heartbreak turns to anger.  While the details are still not known for certain, the more that comes out in the media the more this carnage appears to have been a preventable tragedy and a failure of regulation, enforcement and management.

What do we know from the reports in the media:

1) From CNN we are told that the club’s license had expired in August 2012 and had not been renewed.  We are also told that the owners had said that the club was properly permitted and had been inspected by the fire marshal.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/28/world/americas/brazil-nightclub-fire-main/index.html

According to reports on CNN, a state fire official suggested that the maximum capacity of the club was 1000 people.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/28/world/americas/brazil-nightclub-fire/index.html

This suggests that at least up to August 2012 the club had been considered appropriate and compliant with the local codes.

2) It has been reported in most media accounts that the club had only one exit.  In some media accounts the word emergency exit has been used, which suggests that there may be at least two exits, while in other accounts it has been categorically stated that the club had just one exit.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jan/28/brazil-nightclub-fire-police-question

A schematic of the club on a Brazilian web site shows only a single exit (also see below).

http://g1.globo.com/rs/rio-grande-do-sul/tragedia-incendio-boate-santa-maria-entenda/platb

3) Most recent reports suggest that fire and rescue officials estimate that there were 1500 people in the club at the time of the incident.

http://g1.globo.com/rs/rio-grande-do-sul/tragedia-incendio-boate-santa-maria-entenda/platb

4) While it is still not confirmed, it now appears likely that the band did make use of pyrotechnics during their show, and this was a well known feature of the band.  Reports have even suggested that they made use of three flares.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jan/28/brazil-nightclub-fire-police-question

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21196209

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/29/world/americas/brazil-fire-nightclub.html?_r=0

It is not clear what is meant by a flare, but it is likely to be more than a sparkler!

5) All accounts so far suggest that the fire started in foam sound proofing and spread rapidly.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/28/world/americas/brazil-nightclub-fire/index.html

However, the fire cause is not known at this stage.  It may, as media accounts suggest, have been caused by the pyrotechnics, or it may have been caused by an electrical fault.  We simply do not know at this stage.

6) The exit route was dark.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/28/world/americas/brazil-nightclub-fire/index.html

7) In none of the accounts that I have read is mention of a fire alarm sounding.

8) At first security guards thought that there was a fight or that people were trying to leave without paying so they initially blocked the exit.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/28/world/americas/brazil-nightclub-fire/index.html

9) Reports have highlighted that many bodies were found in the toilets.

10) Reports have suggested that at least one fire extinguisher failed to operate.

http://news.sky.com/story/1043674/brazil-nightclub-fire-security-blocked-exit

Taking these points one can begin to ask some questions concerning the Brazilian fire safety regulations, the enforcement of those regulations and the quality of the management at the club.

REGULATIONS and ENFORCEMENT:

a) How could Brazilian building regulations (or the local code) permit a place of public assembly, with a reported capacity of 1000 people, to have only a single exit?  Even though the license had expired and was under review, the club was considered compliant up to when the license expired in August 2012, so the exit capacity was deemed to be acceptable. Furthermore, what total exit width is required by regulation?   With a capacity of 1000 people I would have expected at least three exits with a total exit width of at least 6m.

b) It appears that no fire alarm sounded.  Was this because the alarm failed or did the club not have an alarm?  If the club did not have an alarm, how could the building regulations possibly permit this?  Had an alarm sounded, perhaps the security guards would not have initially prevented people from escaping, possibly reducing the death toll.  If the club had an alarm was it operational prior to the fire?  If not, could this have been overlooked during a fire inspection?

c) It is reported that the exit route was dark.  Was there no emergency lighting in the club or did it fail?  If there was no emergency lighting how could this be permitted by the regulations?  Had emergency lighting been available, perhaps people would not have tripped in the exit path and perhaps people would not have mistaken the toilets for an exit route. If the club had emergency lighting was it operational prior to the fire?  If not, could this have been overlooked during a fire inspection?

Schematic of the Kiss Nightclub

d) What does the Brazilian code require in terms of emergency exit signage?  Is this required?  Had it been in place, perhaps so many people would not have mistaken the toilets as a means of escape. If emergency exit signage was required by law and it was in place, was it operational prior to the fire?  If not, could this have been overlooked during a fire inspection?

e) The fire appears to have started in the sound proofing foam that lined the ceiling and spread rapidly producing large amounts of toxic fumes.  What type of foam was this?  Was it protected in some way e.g. coated or covered with a fire resistive material?  What do the Brazilian fire regulations say about the type of foams that can be used in places of assembly?  If the use of foam is permitted, was the foam in place compliant with standards prior to the fire?  If not, could this have been overlooked during a fire inspection?

f) What do Brazilian regulations say about the use of indoor pyrotechnics?  If like most countries they permit the use of such devices, what provisions are made to limit their use and ensure that they are used in a responsible manner?   Concerning the use of flares, surely this cannot be permitted?

g) Is it required by Brazilian fire regulations to regularly inspect mandatory fire fighting equipment? If so, what is the frequency?  If regulations stipulate they are to be inspected, were the fire extinguishers in the club inspected prior to the fire?

MANAGEMENT:

a) It is reported that the maximum occupancy for the club was 1000, yet fire authorities suggest that there could have been as many 1500 people in the club.  What means did management have to ensure that the number of people in the club did not exceed their license limit?

b) If the use of pyrotechnics are permitted under Brazilian code, what measures did the management have in place to ensure their safe use?

c) It is reported that fire extinguishers failed to operate.  Did the club management have the fire extinguishers serviced on a regular basis?

d) What training did the club staff have in terms of fire fighting and crowd management?

These are just some of the questions that need to be answered if the root causes of this tragedy are to be addressed.  It is possible that this tragedy was no accident i.e. an unforeseeable event, but the result of a predictable and preventable failing of Regulation, Enforcement and Management.  If so, then immediate measures must be taken to correct the failings in order to ensure a safer Brazil – let this be the legacy of the Kiss Nightclub victims.

Finally, this tragedy provides a couple of hard learnt lessons for the rest of the world:

1) Stop the use of pyrotechnics indoors, they are just too dangerous.

2) Inspection and enforcement must be taken as seriously as legislation.

Come and visit the EXODUS demo stand and check out our most recent research which will be presented through 7 papers:

“Fire and Evacuation Simulation of the Fatal 1985 Manchester Airport B737 Fire”, Wang, Z., Jia, F., and Galea, E.R.

ABSTRACT:

In this paper, fire and evacuation computer simulations are conducted to determine the impact of exit opening times on the evacuation and survivability during the Manchester Airport B737 fire of 1985. The fire and evacuation simulation tools, SMARTFIRE and airEXODUS are used in the analysis. The work is in two parts, the first part attempts to reconstruct the actual fire incident and ensuing evacuation using the known facts derived from the official investigation report.  The second part investigates the impact of exit opening times on the aircraft fire development and subsequent evacuation. The results suggest that the number of fatalities could have been reduced by 92% had the delays in opening two of the three exits been avoided.  Furthermore, it is suggested that opening of the unused aft right exit during the accident did not contribute to the high loss of life in this accident.  Indeed, it is suggested that the opening of this exit improved survivability within the cabin and reduced the death toll by some 17%.

“Investigating the impact of culture on evacuation behaviour — A Polish Data-Set”, Galea, E.R., Sharp, G., Sauter, M., Deere, S.J., Filippidis, L.
ABSTRACT:

In this paper results from an unannounced evacuation trial conducted within a library inWarsawPolandare presented and discussed. This experimental evacuation is part of a large international study investigating the impact of culture on evacuation behaviour. In addition, a framework to enable the systematic analysis of Response Phase behaviours is presented and applied to the trial data. The framework not only provides a consistent method for describing Response Phase behaviour, but also provides a framework for classifying and quantifying the Response Phase other than simply using the overall response time. An empirical response time model, based on data generated using the framework is also presented and applied to the evacuation trial data. The empirical response time model produces a prediction for the average response time for the trial population which is within 3% of the measured value. In addition to presenting Response Phase data, a data-set suitable for the validation of evacuation models is also presented. This consists of both egress times and time dependent density measurements.  buildingEXODUS predictions of the evacuation are compared with the validation data and shown to be in good agreement with the measured data.

“Modelling Human Factors and Evacuation Lift Dispatch Strategies”, Kinsey, M.J., Galea, E.R., and Lawrence, P.J.

ABSTRACT:

This paper presents an overview of a series of evacuation simulations utilising different lift dispatch strategies using an empirical based enhanced agent-lift model developed within the buildingEXODUS software. A brief description of the enhanced agent-lift model is presented. The evacuation scenarios investigated are based on a hypothetical 50 floor building with four staircases and a population of 7,840 agents. While past studies have measured the influence of such evacuation lift dispatch strategies assuming compliant/homogenous agent behaviour, this study extends that work by highlighting the potential influence of human factors upon such evacuation lift dispatch strategies. The study suggests that evacuation lift human factors can considerably decrease evacuation performance and highlights the need for consideration within evacuation strategies based on lifts.  

“An Analysis of the Performance of Trained Staff Using Movement Assist Devices To Evacuate the Non-Ambulant”, Hunt, A., Galea E.R., and Lawrence, P.J.
ABSTRACT:

This paper describes a series of trials undertaken to quantify the performance of trained hospital staff in evacuating a test subject through 11 floors of Ghent University Hospital using four commonly used movement assistance devices: stretcher, carry-chair, evacuation chair and rescue sheet.  In total 32 trials were conducted, using both male and female assist teams.  Presented in the paper are performance results, including: device preparation time, horizontal speeds, vertical speeds, and overtaking potential in stairwells. These data, alongside those established in questionnaire data from the experiment participants, form the basis of the device performance evaluation presented in this paper. A comparative methodology is derived to assess the efficiency of the devices. This methodology enabled performance differences to be established, according to the devices employed and the staff involved.
 

“The UK BeSeCu Fire Fighter Study: A Study of UK Fire Fighters’ Emotional, Cognitive and Behavioural Reactions to Emergencies”, Hulse, L.M. and Galea, E.R.
ABSTRACT:

A survey of UK firefighters revealed them to be seemingly psychologically prepared for what their job would expose them to but not immune to experiencing emotional arousal or perceived risk during emergency events. A number of aspects, such as the event posing serious consequences to their lives/well-being, were singled out as particularly distressing and linked with greater emotional arousal, while other aspects, ones focused on other people/circumstances, reduced perceived risk. Traffic accidents appeared to be a special case, inducing lower arousal and risk than another commonly attended emergency, domestic fires. More years of service had a positive effect on the risk perceived during a stressful event but heightened the emotional arousal in that moment. Received support was one of the most significant predictors of posttraumatic stress and growth, as well as being significantly linked to peri-event thoughts/feelings, although other variables not tested here, e.g. individual differences, might be better at explaining posttraumatic states than event-related variables. The sample reported that safety work with a risk group, migrants, was underway and appeared to be beneficial in reducing instances of “inappropriate behaviour” during emergencies but communication difficulties were an issue and training on this matter would appear desirable. Significant differences in responses across the UK were detected and consequences for international comparisons are discussed.
 

“The Collection and Analysis of Data from a Fatal Large-Scale Crowd Incident”, Pretorius, M., Gwynne, S., and Galea, E.R.
ABSTRACT:

This paper discusses the analysis of data-sets from observations made at the Duisburg Love Parade in 2010 and the large-scale crowd situation that ended in fatalities due to the development of crush conditions. This event is a useful case study of large crowd circulation based on the materialthat was made publically available by the organisers and attendees. The resultant data-set has been used to configure the buildingEXODUS modelto approximate the original incident in order to verify both the model’s performance and the underlying scenario assumptions; i.e. whether buildingEXODUS can reliably represent agent actions, the conditions that develop and the impact of these developments.
 

“Response Time Data for Large Passenger Ferries and Cruise Ships”, Brown, R., Galea, E.R., Deere, S., and Filippidis, L.

ABSTRACT:

This paper outlines research that was carried-out under the EU FP7 7 project SAFEGUARD and presents three sets of passenger response time data generated from full-scale semi-unannounced assembly trials at sea.  The data sets were generated from two different types of passenger ships, a RO-PAX ferry, SuperSpeed 1 (SS1) and a cruise ship, Jewel of the Seas (JoS).  In total response times from over 2200 people were collected making it the largest response time data set ever collected — on land or sea.  The paper presents the analysis methodology used to extract the response time data and the resultant response time distributions (RTD).  A number of key findings from the data analysis will also be presented, which includes: (a) all generated RTDs are log-normal, (b) RTDs from the two SS1 trials using two different populations are very similar, (c) The combined RTD for the SS1 is almost identical to the RTD generated from the earlier published data for the same type of vessel, (d) The RTD derived for the public spaces on the JoS is significantly different to that of the SS1, (e) The RTD for public spaces and cabins are significantly different.  These findings are discussed in this paper and form the basis of a recommendation to be submitted to the International Maritime Organisation to be used to frame the next iteration of the international guidelines for ship evacuation analysis.