3 ms·
The fuel will only burn when oxygen is available. Dynamited buildings would expose more raw wood that catches fire easily to the outside, but with everything on
by rz2k 3y ago
The fuel will only burn when oxygen is available. Dynamited buildings would expose more raw wood that catches fire easily to the outside, but with everything on the ground, it is difficult for all of the fuel of the building to burn simultaneously. Just like with wild fires, the intensity of urban fires will contribute to how fast they spread.
The author was not able to conduct A/B testing of two different strategies, but there is a long history of city-destroying fires involving pre-twentieth century fire-safety standards and wooden buildings.
- Aeolun 3y agoThere’s also a long history of fire brigades not fighting fires but instead demolishing homes to keep the fire contained. For small wooden construction that’s a bit easier than for large victorian mansions though.
- rz2k 3y agoI think, "It wasn't very effective" is just the author filling space on a page with copy, not the assessment of an engineer. The conventional wisdom among experts is relayed here by The Chronicle: > Van Ness was once the city’s grandest boulevard, lined with Victorian mansions and impressive churches. That all came to an end when the great San Francisco earthquake of 1906 set off a firestorm that raged for days. The fire came under control only after the U.S. Army dynamited nearly every building on the east side of Van Ness. So the avenue provided the firebreak that saved the city. https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/nativeson/article/The-bandages-are-coming-off-Check-out-S-F-s-16617835.php https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/nativeson/article/The-ba... I think of Victorian mansions as being wooden construction, and from a fast look at the results of image searching "Van Ness Avenue before 1906" that seems to be the case.