Statement
on the Progress of NIST's Rhode Island Nightclub Fire Investigation
July 17, 2003
Media Contact: Michael E. Newman, (301) 975-3025, michael.newman@nist.gov
The Commerce
Department’s National Institute of Standards
and Technology (NIST) reported today on the progress made
in its technical investigation of the tragic fire at The
Station nightclub in West Warwick, R.I., on Feb. 20, 2003.
The purpose of the NIST investigation—being conducted
under the authority of the National Construction Safety Team
(NCST) Act—is to establish the likely technical cause
or causes of the building failure that led to 100 deaths.
The NIST team is coordinating its efforts with other federal
agencies, including the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) and
the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF),
and also is establishing liaisons with appropriate local
and Rhode Island state agencies.
At the conclusion of its investigation, the NIST team will
recommend, as necessary, specific improvements to building
standards, codes and practices based upon its findings, and
will recommend any research and other appropriate actions
needed to improve the structural fire safety of buildings
and evacuation procedures.
Among the accomplishments to date in the NIST Rhode Island
investigation are the following:
- A
preliminary computer reconstruction of the fire has been
developed using NIST’s smoke and fire behavior
modeling software. The model simulates the fire spread and
smoke movement through the nightclub. The NIST team is actively
seeking more data about the fire in order to refine the model
and improve the ability to accurately portray the events
of Feb. 20, 2003.
- A
solicitation is being prepared for a team of outside
experts that will document the evacuation
from The
Station on the night of the fire, determine the role of
the life safety features at the nightclub in assisting
safe egress,
and compare/contrast the evacuation and its outcome to
other similar scenarios. Video and photographic records,
field
data, interviews, and other oral and written accounts from
building occupants, emergency responders and other witnesses
will allow a timeline of the events to be constructed.
- A
solicitation has been issued for a team of outside experts
to (1) determine the criteria
and requirements that
governed the design, construction and modification of the
structural and fire safety systems of The Station nightclub;
and (2) document the operating and maintenance practices
and procedures in use for these systems prior to the fire.
- An
effort is under way to collect data on the emergency response
to the events at The Station
nightclub with the
help of the USFA and the local fire department. This effort
will document procedures and operation of equipment and function
of communications systems, on-site emergency information
systems, fire alarm panels, standpipes and fire hoses, and
other emergency equipment.
Updated
information on the NIST Rhode Island nightclub fire
investigation—including the complete investigation
plan—may be found at www.nist.gov/ncst.
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