Understanding Human Behaviors in Fires

When:  Mar 28, 2023 from 09:00 to 17:30 (DE)

1 day: Tuesday, 0900-1730

This one-day seminar discusses the prediction of human behavior during a fire emergency as one of the most challenging areas of fire protection engineering. Understanding and considering human factors is essential to designing effective evacuation systems, ensuring safety during a fire and related emergency events.

This seminar will present the many types of characteristics that may influence occupant performance, reaction, and movement process in an emergency situation. It will include a discussion on the Protective Action Decision Model (PADM) and how it serves to inform our understanding of the flow of information to occupants via cues from the fire, building or people in a fire situation and the resultant decision-making processes that influence their protective action responses during the fire incident. Discussions will also address exposure to toxicants, irritants, heat and visibility loss in a fire and the potential impacts, including additive effects, on the human body at varying degrees of exposure. 

This seminar will also focus on modeling human behavior in fire and will include a discussion on the development and selection of occupant behavioral scenarios. It will also discuss the many considerations that affect the choice of a particular calculation approach or model, such as project data needed, model input data needed, complexity of scenario(s), detail of output needed, and need to assess the impact of behavioral assumptions.

This course will also discuss fire situation management and enhancing human response to emergency notification and messaging and managing the movement of occupants during fire emergencies.

Target Audience: Engineers, Architects, Code Officials/AHJs, Public Educators

Materials: Reference only - SFPE Guide to Human Behavior in Fire, 2nd Edition (2018)

Instructor: Steve Gwynne
PDH Credit: 7 PDH
(Register in conjunction with the European Conference)