Planning for Post-Earthquake Fires Considering Performance of Transportation and Water Networks

Fire following earthquake as a cascading event can cause major losses in a community. This study quantifies induced earthquake damages to water and transportation networks and the building inventory to model fire following earthquake losses considering the response time of fire department, suppression actions, and fire spread inside and between the buildings. The fire engine assignments are completed by incorporating a decision-making algorithm to minimize losses. The model assigns fire engines dynamically over time, and incorporates the post-disaster changes in response time and water network serviceability level as a result of the earthquake. The framework is applied to a case study to investigate potential regions with vulnerability, which in-turn can be used for preparedness and mitigation as part of resilience planning. The efficiency and adequacy of fire department emergency response are shown to be dependent on the locations of ignition and building layout in the community.