Post-Earthquake Emergency Response Time to Locations of Fire Ignition

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper investigates fire department response time to locations of ignition after an earthquake and proposes a framework to identify vulnerable areas in a community by considering both the likelihood of ignition and potential delays in response of the fire department. Delays are calculated as a function of bridge damage and blocked roadways due to building debris. Uncertainty in bridge performance and debris accumulation are incorporated into the analysis. The framework is applied to a case study to demonstrate how the proposed work can be used to plan fire department resources, and minimize losses from postearthquake fires.