Miscellaneous

NFPA members can download free PDF copies of selected One-Stop Data Shop reports. All reports and packages are also available for sale in bound, photocopy format. NFPA members receive a 10% discount off the cover price. To order any report(s), e-mail Nancy Schwartz or call +1 617 984-7450.

Deaths Due to Unintentional Injury from Explosions
John R. Hall, Jr., April 2009
Cost: Free. 4 pages. Order# USS53.
Statistics from the U.S. death certificate database on deaths involving unintentional injury from explosions, including pressure vessel explosions, which are analyzed separately.

Abstract: In 2005, 151 people died of unintentional injury due to explosions. Another 26 people died as a result of rupture of a pressurized device, such as a boiler.
NFPA members: Download this report. (PDF, 31 KB)

Industrial Loaders and Forklift Fires
Marty Ahrens, January 2009
Cost: $25.00 54 pages. Order # USS76.
An overview of fires involving industrial loaders and forklifts. The report looks at these types of fires by, area of origin, item first ignited, type of occupancy and factor contributing to ignition. Includes published incident descriptions.

Abstract: NFPA estimates that in 2003-2006, U.S. fire departments responded to an estimated total of 1,340 structure and vehicle fires per year in which industrial loaders or forklifts were directly involved in ignition. These fires caused an estimated average of 22 civilian injuries, and $36 million in direct property damage per year. Ninety-one percent of the fires were coded as vehicle fires. These vehicle fires occurred in a wide variety of properties. Almost two-thirds of these fires originated in the vehicle’s engine area running gear or wheel area. These estimates are based on data from Version 5.0 of the U.S. Fire Administration’s (USFA’s) National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) and the National Fire Protection Association’s annual fire department experience survey. Previously published incident descriptions are included to better illustrate how these fires can happen.
NFPA members: Download this report. (PDF, 303 KB)
All visitors: Download the executive summary and table of contents, (PDF, 121 KB) or order this report.
All visitors: Download a fact sheet. (PDF, 32 KB)

Also available: Industrial Loader, Forklift or Material Handling Equipment Fires by Model Year by Marty Ahrens, February 2009.
All visitors: Download this table for free. (PDF, 60 KB)

Computer and Computer Peripheral Fires with a Discussion of Batteries
Marty Ahrens, August 2006. 18 pages.
This report covers computer and computer peripheral fires by equipment involved, cause, factor contributing to ignition, item first ignited, heat source, extent of flame damage, area of origin and property use or occupancy. Recall and resource information is also included.

Update: March 6, 2007: published in USA TODAY. WASHINGTON — A rash of fires on planes has spurred the government to plan new restrictions on how airline passengers may carry lithium batteries used to power laptop computers and cellphones. The Department of Transportation, which already bars bulk shipments of some lithium batteries on passenger planes, expects to propose more restrictions later this year, said Bob Richard of the DOT's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. Read the entire story.

Abstract: During 1999-2003, computers and computer peripherals were involved in an estimated average of 360 reported structure fires per year, resulting in an annual average of nine civilian injuries and $16.6 million in direct property damage. Some type of short circuit arc, electrical failure or malfunction factored in 69% of these incidents. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a number of recalls for computers, computer batteries and computer peripherals. The CPSC also issued a warning that household batteries can cause burns. The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB’s) public hearing on a February 7, 2006, United Parcel Service airplane fire included a panel on the design, testing, and failure modes of lithium-ion batteries. The Federal Aviation Administration provided a list of aviation incidents involving a wide variety of battery types. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has issued new standards for batteries for mobile computers and cell phones.
All visitors: Download this report. (PDF, 92 KB)

Computer Equipment and Computer Areas
John R. Hall, Jr., January 2004
Cost: $25.00. 59 pages. Order # PKG03.
Statistical analyses of fire experience involving computer or other electronic equipment (e.g., telephone equipment) or fires starting in rooms dedicated to such equipment, plus selected incident descriptions, most not published anywhere else.
NFPA members: Download this report. (PDF, 162 KB)

Wood Shingle or Wood Shake Roof
July 2001
Cost: $25.00. 103 pages. Order # PKG20.
Special analysis of trends and causes of wood shingle roof fires and selected published incident descriptions.
NFPA members: Download this report. (PDF, 50 KB)

Whatever Happened to Combustion Toxicity?
John R. Hall, Jr., November 1996
Cost: $10.00. 10 pages. Order # PSS43.
Prompted by the passage of NFPA's new standard on toxic potency testing, this article reviews what is known about how toxic effects occur and how they can best be measured and modeled, emphasizing a layperson's perspective and a review of relevant statistics. From NFPA Journal.