Earthquake
13 articles in this category
Recent Earthquakes Provide Reminder to Design and Prepare for Seismic Exposures
In the early morning of February 6th, 2023, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake with an epicenter near Nurda─ƒi, Turkey was felt throughout central Turkey and northern Syria. Approximately 11 minutes later, a...
Managing Property Risks at Casinos
Nearly everyone has some experience in a casino. Whether you are a high roller playing your favorite table game, playing the penny slots, or just driving down Las Vegas Boulevard as a tourist,...
Seismic Restraint of Sprinkler Systems – NFPA-13 versus FM Global Standards
Improperly protected sprinkler piping can move violently during an earthquake, resulting not only in extensive water damage to the interior of the building and equipment, but also result in a...
Fear vs. Prevention
Two years ago a leading article with a major head line in the USA Today stated "Fierce Hurricane Season Predicted." The article went on to say that an "extremely active" hurricane season was to occur...
Liquefaction
Liquefaction, as it relates to earthquakes, occurs when the strength and stiffness of a soil is reduced by the strong shaking caused by seismic events. It more commonly occurs in soils where the...
Earthquake Bracing Requirements for FM Global Data Sheet 2-8
This Data Sheet provides a detailed description of the components necessary to guard against earthquakes for a water-based fire protection system. The fire protection system can include sprinkler...
Choosing Structural Systems for Earthquakes
Several factors come into play when it comes to designing earthquake protection for a building. These include site selection, building type and the particular building code used. This month, we will...
Seismic Considerations for Flammable Gas Piping
In our July 2006 article, we described methods for lowering the risk of a fire after an earthquake. One portion of the article discussed ways to protect piping used to transfer flammable liquids and...
Lowering the Chance of Fire After an Earthquake
In previous articles we discussed earthquake protection for fire protection systems. We now turn the discussion from maintaining the ability to control a fire to lowering the chances of a fire or...
Another Look at Seismic Protection for Sprinklers
Determining the need for seismic protection for a sprinkler system and designing the protection used to be a straightforward task. The designer would look on an Earthquake Zone Map in NFPA 13 to see...
Changes to NFPA 13 Regarding Earthquake Protection
It is important to maintain sprinkler systems in service for fire protection following a major earthquake. Present standards for sprinkler system earthquake resistance are mostly satisfactory;...
Severe Weather Watches and Warnings
As a reminder, hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30 in the Northern Hemisphere. Windstorm is the second highest cause of property loss after fire. Recent severe windstorms have proven...