Fire incident analysis of a large-scale informal settlement fire based on video imagery

Abstract

Informal settlements (IS) (also known as slums, shantytowns, ghettos, etc.) regularly experience fires. There has been an increasing interest in understanding fire dynamics in ISs. However, research has tended to focus on theories developed or based on idealized experiments rather than analysing real fire incidents, primarily because of the difficulty in obtaining data from real events. This work describes a recent fire incident that took place in an IS in South Africa. The analysis is based on the recording of a transit CCTV camera that captured the entire fire incident, the Fire & Rescue Service Incident Report and interviews conducted with the firefighters who responded to the incident. The footage provides high quality data allowing for novel analysis and understanding of such events never previously attainable. In a period of 33 min, an estimated 42 dwellings were affected at an average burning rate of 1.2 m/min and 15.45 m2/min. This paper describes (a) the fire spread, (b) the human behaviour, and (c) firefighters’ response and operations. The study of such incidents allows for a detailed understanding and development of policy for safety during urban environment large-scale fires. Additionally, improved interventions, firefighter strategies, community layouts, and response strategies can be developed for low-income communities.