Fire safety

11th DECEMBER, 2008
Summary of the principles of fire safety when applied to single storey warehouses
Fire is the result of an action whereby heat and light energy are unconfined during a course of chemical reaction, combustion being specific to fire. It is a rapid chemical change which results in flames, light and heat due to exothermic oxidation brought about on a combustible substance, which could be anything apart from or more than burning fuel. There are four stages that are involved in the fire irrespective of what type of a structure/ building is on fire, and that includes warehouses as well. A warehouse can be struck by these four stages, namely:
- Incipient stage: accompanied by very little heat, no smoke and no flame. 
- Smoldering stage. Smoke is there, but sans flame and has a little heat.
- Flame stage. Flame is there, heat, less or no smoke.
- Heat stage. Too much of heat is present; flame, toxic gases and heat are produced. 
A number of principles of fire safety apply to buildings and as well to single storey warehouses in question. These principles are normally derived from 5 functional requirements of Approved Document B:
As per these principles, the requirements are:
1. Means of Warning and Escape so that appropriate provisions for the same in case of fire from the building to a place of safety can be made.
2. The internal fir spread (Lining) B2, aims to identify those areas within the building that should be furnished as per the standard classifications
3. Internal fire spread structure should define the load bearing element of the structure and the nature of fire resisting compartmentation
4. External fire structure should provide guidance for fire resistance of external walls and the roof coverings
A summary of the fire performance expect making reference to the requirements for compartmentation and the minimum standards for fire resistance.
A prescriptive method is used to define a structural fire in accordance with the materials used, shape and size of structural elements, thickness of fire protection materials and construction details etc best for a static situation but on the other hand a performance-based method for structural fire design is adaptable to the process of designing structures to wind loads and seismic effects. More emphasis is given to the evaluation of fire performance in relation to the key functional criteria which has made it more apt for situations which need aesthetic requirements. 
In the event of fire, a warehouse must perform to the predefined set of rules laid down by the authorities; but the best part of a warehouse could be said as that that withstands the fire. This can be ensured by using material that is desirable for survival, escape and firefighting. Structural frames made of concrete are designed to satisfy this demand for overall stability in the event of fire and in fact can also exceed expectations. Furthermore concretes inherent fire resistance acts as a long-lasting guard towards any eventuality. 
References to, and descriptions of, other examples of fires in such buildings, together with your comments on how well or otherwise the buildings performed.
Since warehouse fires are being discussed, the most suitable example in this case would be fire in clothing warehouse in Marseille in 1996. The fire in this warehouse spread very quickly, more so because there was cloth (highly combustible) and also sports equipment strewn all around the warehouse. When the fire broke out, there were 4o people working in the warehouse and it took just five minutes for the whole building to be on fire. The heat generated by the burning goods and the smoke accompanied with it were simply uncontrollable. This was further aggravated by the absence of sprinklers and compartment walls, and the building structure was very unstable when the fire was raging. This resulted in complete destruction,; something that was abetted by the winds blowing at that time. This further put to danger other warehouses, barely 10 meters away. But teh good part was that all the staff were evacuated from these warehouses before they could have been harmed. One exemplary action by the firefighters was that they saved these other warehouses by creating a curtain wall of water between the warehouses.
Comments on the adequacy of the performance requirements included in the official guidance document
Despite the entire manuals in place, there is a lack of common rules for fire safety engineering. Rules, whatever are in place, are full of variations from one place to another or even from one building to another. The approach is not uniform everywhere. There are also concerns about the accuracy of probability-based calculation used in firefighting. All parameters related to firefighting need to be looked into at a deeper level and the same could include anything from fire brigade success rate to human behavior, sprinkler systems to engineering precisions used in the warehouses.
References:
Brown D.F.,Dunn W. E., Lazaro M. A.and  Policastro A.J., 1999, Contributed paper from the modeling session from the joint Fire Science Conference and Workshop.

Stollard P, Abrahams J, 1999,  Fire from First Principles: A Design Guide to Building Fire Safety, Published by Taylor & Francis, 1999

Furness A, Muckett M, 2007, Introduction to Fire Safety Management: The Handbook for Students on NEBOSH and Other Fire Safety Courses, Published by Butterworth-Heinemann