Big Storage, Bigger Questions

The NFPA Podcast

Modern warehouses and distribution centers are huge. Some have footprints larger than 60 American football fields and are filled with densely packed racks up to 100 feet tall. When a giant building like this catches fire, what can firefighters do? Today on the podcast, we talk to a veteran firefighter and a fire protection engineer who just co-authored a detailed report on the many challenges that the fire service faces in responding these storage fires. We find out what we know, what we need to find out, how modern warehouses are changing, and what fire departments should be doing now to prepare for fires in these giant facilities. LINKS: Read the full Fire Protection Research Foundation report: “Identifying Challenges to Fire Service Response in Storage Settings.”