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NCCF, Town Officials Collaborate on New Firefighter Safety Initiative
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Wood Truss test Burn
This video was created to help show firefighters the dangers of wood truss roof assemblies when they are exposed to fire. The video contains excerpts of tests burns that were conducted on a wood truss assembly and also a wood “stick built” roof assembly. With the help of one prominent local nonprofit organization, town officials are launching a new initiative that’s designed to supply more information to firefighters arriving on the scene of a structure fire in order to help ensure their safety. Soon, when building permit applications come into the town, a note will be made if the new structure is using what’s known as “lightweight truss construction”—an efficient and increasingly common framework that relies on geometry for strength rather than mass. A trusted product for homebuilding, truss construction also has far a smaller surface area than typical framed construction, “so when it’s exposed to very high heat, such as in a fire, it fails far more quickly than dimensional lumber,” according to New Canaan firefighter John Aniello.
