NFPA Journal - Spring 2022 - 29

ADVOCACY,
Outreach by Lorraine Carli
Bringing the Fire
AN INNOVATIVE NEW TOOL USES VIRTUAL REALITY TO CONVEY THE POWER OF SIDE-BY-SIDE
BURNS-AND TO DEMONSTRATE THE ESSENTIAL VALUE OF HOME FIRE SPRINKLERS
O
ne of the most powerful
tools for demonstrating
the effectiveness of home
fire sprinklers is the sideby-side
burn, where two
identical rooms are set on fire. The only
variation is that one room includes a
single home fire sprinkler. And as every
demonstration vividly illustrates, that
sprinkler makes all the difference.
This type of demonstration isn't
always possible, however. Some communities
don't have the resources necessary
to conduct side-by-side burns. Sometimes
environmental issues or other practical
challenges get in the way. The pandemic
has forced communities to cancel
demonstrations due to gathering limits.
But a new virtual tool offers a promisI
wondered if a
ing alternative to live burns. The Home
Fire Sprinkler Coalition (HFSC), a group
focused on educational outreach around
sprinklers, has developed an innovative
virtual reality (VR) home fire sprinkler
education technology that allows users to experience the
drama of a side-by-side burn, without the logistical challenges
of staging an actual burn. The VR Fire & Sprinkler Demo kit
utilizes VR headsets to provide an immersive 3D experience
in two separate rooms; a 2D version has been developed for
web-based on-demand use. The project is funded by a 2020
Fire Prevention & Safety grant from the Federal Emergency
Management Agency and by a seed grant from State Farm.
Replicating an actual side-by-side burn is no small challenge.
Experiencing the power of fire up close is scary-you witness it,
and you also feel it. I saw my first side-by-side burn demonstration
about 15 years ago at an HFSC meeting, and I was struck by
how fast the fire moved. In the unsprinklered room, the smoke
and flames roared on well past the sound of the smoke alarm,
and the room reached flashover in about two and half minutes.
In the room with the fire sprinkler, the smoke alarm beeped less
than a minute after small flames began to show from a wastebasket
fire, and within another minute or so you could hear the
virtual side-by-side
burn would pack
the same punch as
the real thing.
The short answer
is yes, it does.
pop of the sprinkler head followed by the
flow of water. Shortly after, the small fire
was practically extinguished, reduced to
a smolder. The lesson was clear: sprinklers
are the solution to reducing home
fire loss. Would a virtual experience pack
the same punch?
The short answer is yes, it does. At a
recent demo of the kit, I sat in a chair
wearing the VR headset. The demo
began, and suddenly I was in a room
where a fire ignited. I had 360-degree
access; I could look into every corner,
floor to ceiling, and see what was
happening. In about 30 seconds, I had
the sensation of being in the middle of
the room as it burned. I was relieved
and astonished that I didn't actually get
soaking wet when the sprinkler went off.
As fire safety advocates, we champion
these demonstrations to educate people
on the life safety benefits of home fire
sprinklers. The demos reinforce two key
facts: the civilian fire death rate is 89
percent lower in structures with installed fire sprinklers, and
the rate of firefighter injuries is 60 percent lower in home fires
with sprinklers than in fires without sprinklers.
The VR Fire & Sprinkler Demo kit will be introduced and
evaluated through some our Fire Sprinkler Initiative State
Coalitions beginning this spring, but it already strikes me as
the next great tool for home fire sprinkler education. The key
is its portability; if you can't get people to the fire, bring the
fire to them. Consider how this tool can be used with policymakers,
schools, community groups, and other stakeholders
who can drive the use of home fire sprinklers in new homes.
This novel approach will also help fire departments reach key
decision makers in their jurisdictions with the facts about
today's house fires and the unparalleled protection afforded
by fire sprinklers.
To learn more, contact us at firesprinklerinitiative@nfpa.org.
LORRAINE CARLI is vice president of Outreach and Advocacy for NFPA.
NFPA .ORG/JOURNAL * NFPA JOURNAL | 29
LEGISLATION,
AND PUBLIC
EDUCATION
MICHAEL HOEWELER
http://nfpa.org/journal
NFPA Journal - Spring 2022

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