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A Study on the Safety Evaluation of Escape Routes for Vulnerable Populations in Residential Facilities

Author

Listed:
  • Chansol Ahn

    (Department of Fire Safety Research, Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, Goyang 18544, Korea)

  • Hyeongwoo Kim

    (Department of Safety Engineering, Incheon National University, Incheon 22012, Korea)

  • Insu Choi

    (Department of Safety Engineering, Incheon National University, Incheon 22012, Korea)

  • Dongho Rie

    (Fire Disaster Prevention Research Center of Safety Engineering, Incheon National University, Incheon 22012, Korea)

Abstract

The continued increase in human lifespans is accelerating the aging of the population in most countries. The increase in elderly care facilities corresponds to a relative increase in the number of people who are vulnerable in the context of evacuation. For example, an elderly care hospital is a representative facility for vulnerable populations as regards evacuation, as residents in such a hospital cannot evacuate themselves in the event of a fire. It is therefore necessary for such buildings to formulate detailed evacuation plans that consider the walking situations of their residents in the event of a disaster. In this study, the fire dynamics simulator (FDS) was used to calculate the available safety escape time (ASET)—which is the point at which evacuation is impossible from the ignition time of the fire—for inpatients in nursing hospitals. The required safety escape time (RSET), which is the time required to move to a safe place, was calculated by reflecting a patient’s evacuation speed using Pathfinder. In addition, the evacuation route was simulated with three variables—stairs, elevators, and ramps—along with the movement pattern. The simulations of evacuation performance evaluation based on time analysis showed that there were differences in the number of fatalities depending on the choice of evacuation routes and movement patterns for each disabled group. Evacuation using ramps was confirmed to reduce fatalities from at least 48 to up to 60 people compared to evacuation using stairs or elevators. The usage of ramp evacuation in elderly care hospitals has proved to be superior to other evacuation routes in ensuring the safety of vulnerable persons during fire evacuation.

Suggested Citation

  • Chansol Ahn & Hyeongwoo Kim & Insu Choi & Dongho Rie, 2022. "A Study on the Safety Evaluation of Escape Routes for Vulnerable Populations in Residential Facilities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-19, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:10:p:5998-:d:816120
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    Cited by:

    1. Yongjoo Kim & Dongin Park & Soobin Kim & Dongho Rie, 2023. "A Study on the Quantitative Fire Performance Evaluation Method of Building Finishing Materials with a Focus on Medical Facilities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-19, June.
    2. Poonyawat Kusonwattana & Ardvin Kester S. Ong & Yogi Tri Prasetyo & Klint Allen Mariñas & Nattakit Yuduang & Thanatorn Chuenyindee & Kriengkrai Thana & Satria Fadil Persada & Reny Nadlifatin & Kirstie, 2022. "Predicting Factors Affecting the Intention to Prepare for Mitigation of Man-Made Fire Disasters in Chonburi Province, Thailand: An Integration of Structural Equation Modeling and Artificial Neural Net," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-21, November.

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