Thesis (M. App. Sc.)--Carleton University, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 322-325). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

This thesis outlines research completed in partnership between Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service and Liverpool John Moores University. The aim of the research was to investigate ways to develop and implement a bespoke Geographic Information System framework that could be used to identify risk of future anomalous accidental dwelling fires. This thesis outlines the techniques used to develop the framework and its application. In particular, the thesis presents an understanding of accidental dwelling fire causal factors and how data related to these can be incorporated into a model for identifying risk and targeting initiatives relative to the risk. The thesis also investigates two strands of customer insight developed for Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service. These are community profiles, based on a cluster analysis approach, to understand risks present within communities and the vulnerable person index, which identifies individuals most at risk from fire using data shared through information sharing agreements. Nationally recognised risk modelling toolkits, such as the Fire Service Emergency Cover toolkit do not utilise local information or have the ability to identify risk to an individual level. There is a need for this intelligence to be able to proactively target services, such as the Home Fire Safety Check. This paper also discusses some of the key operational and strategic areas that benefit from this information and presents some case studies related to the application of the research.

Fire prevention is a critical component in achieving social welfare and prosperity. The lack of worldwide fire prevention leads to an increasing number of fires, as well as to a greater number of fire-related deaths, injuries, and fire-related property damage. Traditionally, fire prevention has been the responsibility of individual governments, while fire prevention duties are usually carried out by local fire departments. Such an approach is very common and is observed globally. Until now, the above response has been successful. For example, due to fire prevention measures applied in the 1990s, the number of fires caused by open flames (such as candles) was significantly reduced. Since 2014, the number of fires in some Western countries (e.g., the US and the UK) shows an increasing trend. In March 2019,11, people have died in fires across Connecticut (O’Neill 2019). From 2017 to 2018, the number of people who died in fires in Mississippi grew by more than 40 percent (Moore 2019). Among the main reasons for this growth are new combustible materials, reduced fire prevention funds, and more dynamic lifestyles. Lack of fire prevention consequently increases fire risks, and, as a result, health inequalities. According to Whitehead and Dahlgren (2007), health inequalities are health differences that are avoidable, unjust, unfair, and unacceptable. The question arises: do current fire prevention services allow sufficient support for people to be safe from fire, specifically in domestic environments? Can social enterprises play a role and how do they fit into the fire prevention supply chain. The purpose of this research is to gain an understanding of social enterprises and their influence on supply chains, in general, and specifically for fire prevention supply chains. This phenomenon is evaluated through the lenses of social capital theory and institutional theory. Research (Rothstein and Stolle 2008) has shown the effects that social capital has on institutions, or simply how can it be used as a strategic resource (Gulati and Gargiulo 1999). Institutional and Social Capital Theories set the foundation of how social enterprises transform and contribute to sustainable supply chains, plus how they solve social problems, specifically fire safety (Patuelli and Savioli 2016). According to Wallace and Wallace (1997), social capital provides a collective resource that can be mobilized by individuals to enable communities to develop resilience against severe threats to public health, such as social exclusion or even unemployment. By identifying three dimensions of sustainable development: techno-economic, ecological and social (Clift 2003; Hutchins and Sutherland 2008; Yakovleva and Sarkis 2010), there are various social capital diffusion mechanisms for building sustainability within supply chains through social enterprise involvement. Transforming supply chains by building social legitimacy and by altering institutional norms, are examples of providing competitive advantages to supply chains and supply chain partners of social enterprises. This research seeks to understand social enterprises and entrepreneurship capabilities transform institutions to strengthen supply chain sustainability. Ideally, these institutions should provide solutions to the problem of decreased awareness of sustainable fire prevention, as well as available resources for fire prevention. This research focus is primarily on social sustainability and safety through fire prevention. The importance of this study lies in our contributions to help diffuse socially sustainable solutions and practices across supply chains. In this case, similar to other social concerns, the problem of fire prevention is a critical one within supply chains and society. Understanding the role of social enterprise to help diffuse these norms and practices help to understand general supply chain sustainability concerns for competitive and social reasons. Methodologically, a qualitative, exploratory method was applied. To analyze the data collected for this research, we used a Thematic Analysis. Three supply chains with social enterprises as a focal firm were investigated. This research contributes by furthering the theory of sustainable supply chains with the involvement of social enterprise; or hybrid organizations - that have both a social and a strategic financial outlook. The research involves the utilization of Thematic Analysis, and semi-structured interviews of three fire prevention-focused supply chains. This study is the first that investigates fire prevention from the perspective of supply chains and social enterprises. The results will inform other types of sustainability and social enterprises, which include humanitarian, environmental, educational, and poverty-based foci.

Fire prevention is a critical component in achieving social welfare and prosperity. The lack of worldwide fire prevention leads to an increasing number of fires, as well as to a greater number of fire-related deaths, injuries, and fire-related property damage. Traditionally, fire prevention has been the responsibility of individual governments, while fire prevention duties are usually carried out by local fire departments. Such an approach is very common and is observed globally. Until now, the above response has been successful. For example, due to fire prevention measures applied in the 1990s, the number of fires caused by open flames (such as candles) was significantly reduced. Since 2014, the number of fires in some Western countries (e.g., the US and the UK) shows an increasing trend. In March 2019,11, people have died in fires across Connecticut (O’Neill 2019). From 2017 to 2018, the number of people who died in fires in Mississippi grew by more than 40 percent (Moore 2019). Among the main reasons for this growth are new combustible materials, reduced fire prevention funds, and more dynamic lifestyles. Lack of fire prevention consequently increases fire risks, and, as a result, health inequalities. According to Whitehead and Dahlgren (2007), health inequalities are health differences that are avoidable, unjust, unfair, and unacceptable. The question arises: do current fire prevention services allow sufficient support for people to be safe from fire, specifically in domestic environments? Can social enterprises play a role and how do they fit into the fire prevention supply chain. The purpose of this research is to gain an understanding of social enterprises and their influence on supply chains, in general, and specifically for fire prevention supply chains. This phenomenon is evaluated through the lenses of social capital theory and institutional theory. Research (Rothstein and Stolle 2008) has shown the effects that social capital has on institutions, or simply how can it be used as a strategic resource (Gulati and Gargiulo 1999). Institutional and Social Capital Theories set the foundation of how social enterprises transform and contribute to sustainable supply chains, plus how they solve social problems, specifically fire safety (Patuelli and Savioli 2016). According to Wallace and Wallace (1997), social capital provides a collective resource that can be mobilized by individuals to enable communities to develop resilience against severe threats to public health, such as social exclusion or even unemployment. By identifying three dimensions of sustainable development: techno-economic, ecological and social (Clift 2003; Hutchins and Sutherland 2008; Yakovleva and Sarkis 2010), there are various social capital diffusion mechanisms for building sustainability within supply chains through social enterprise involvement. Transforming supply chains by building social legitimacy and by altering institutional norms, are examples of providing competitive advantages to supply chains and supply chain partners of social enterprises. This research seeks to understand social enterprises and entrepreneurship capabilities transform institutions to strengthen supply chain sustainability. Ideally, these institutions should provide solutions to the problem of decreased awareness of sustainable fire prevention, as well as available resources for fire prevention. This research focus is primarily on social sustainability and safety through fire prevention. The importance of this study lies in our contributions to help diffuse socially sustainable solutions and practices across supply chains. In this case, similar to other social concerns, the problem of fire prevention is a critical one within supply chains and society. Understanding the role of social enterprise to help diffuse these norms and practices help to understand general supply chain sustainability concerns for competitive and social reasons. Methodologically, a qualitative, exploratory method was applied. To analyze the data collected for this research, we used a Thematic Analysis. Three supply chains with social enterprises as a focal firm were investigated. This research contributes by furthering the theory of sustainable supply chains with the involvement of social enterprise; or hybrid organizations - that have both a social and a strategic financial outlook. The research involves the utilization of Thematic Analysis, and semi-structured interviews of three fire prevention-focused supply chains. This study is the first that investigates fire prevention from the perspective of supply chains and social enterprises. The results will inform other types of sustainability and social enterprises, which include humanitarian, environmental, educational, and poverty-based foci.

No description available.

Childhood fears have been considered to be part of normal development. It is when these fears develop into severe fears or phobias that they become of concern to clinicians. Children's fears have varied over the years from school related fears, to political fears, to fears of danger and death in most recent years. Of the latter category, fear of fire-getting burned emerged as the second most commonly reported fear among children. The present study examines two cognitive self-instructional strategies to test their effectiveness in reducing children's fear of fire. Cognitive strategies were the ones of choice in that they remedied many of the problems found in some of the other behavioral techniques. Either of two self-instructional strategies including a fire safety training program using self-instructions and a self-instructional fear reduction strategy were taught to second and third grade children. A major hypothesis of the study was not confirmed which maintained that children who learned self-instructional fear reduction exercises would show greater reductions in fear than children who did not learn the exercises. Although these results were not evident immediately following training, a trend toward this expectation did appear at follow-up. These findings implied that although the cognitive self-control strategy was not effective in reducing children's fear immediately, it did tend to provide for greater maintenance of behavior change over time. The present study has implications for continued investigation in the areas of childhood fear reduction and the maintenance of behavior over time. / M.S.

Land-clearing fires set by settlers in the Brazilian Amazon give rise to large scale wildfires that threaten mature forests, agricultural plantations, and settlement areas. Our purpose is to examine labor devoted to fire prevention (firebreak establishment) and burning for crop production for subsistence smallholders in the Tapajós National Forest in Pará, Brazil. Both the decision to engage in each activity and the scale of the activity are examined. A household model addressing decision-making under risk is estimated using survey data from 220 households. We find economic variables such as the opportunity cost of household time, market conditions, and the hiring wage to be important predictors of both decisions (often these are more important than household or demographic considerations), as is household reliance on standing forest resources for non-timber products. We also find that the involvement of NGOs and the government plays an important role in encouraging fire prevention behavior. Our results provide support for programs that emphasize economic parameters and for considering smallholder productivity in policies that target accidental fire prevention or reduction in burning activity. / Master of Science

"The use of advanced materials in the construction of high-speed craft is becoming more commonplace. However, there are certain requirements set in the High Speed Craft Code (published by IMO) that restrict the use of materials based on results from full scale room fire testing (ISO 9705). An obvious benefit would be gained by simulating the results of these full-scale tests using bench scale data from the Cone Calorimeter and LIFT apparatus. A flame-spread algorithm developed by Henri Mitler at the National Institute of Standards and Technology was selected for implementation into the zone fire model CFAST. This algorithm was modified from its original form, so that it could simulate flame spread on wall/ceiling lining materials for both sidewall and corner scenarios, including ISO 9705 as prescribed in the High Speed Craft Code. Changes to the algorithm included geometry of flame spread across the ceiling, flame height, radiation exchange, ignition burner heat flux maps, and multiple pyrolysis zones. The new flame spread algorithm was evaluated against room corner test data from four different marine composite materials tested per ISO 9705."

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

<p>The Miombo forest is represented in seven countries in the subtropical area of Africa and is an example of ecosystem adapted to the disturbance of anthropogenic fire. The forest yields a number of different ecosystem goods and services including fuelwood, honey and soil protection. Fire has found a worldwide acceptance during the last decade due to deeper understanding of their role in the ecosystem. The presence of fire prevents up-building of fuel and big fires, therefore a new fire management is now seen.</p><p>In general the Miombo forest is threatened by overexploitation. A similar situation was represented in Duru-Haitemba forest where the case study was situated in northern Tanzania. To conserve the forest and give the tenure of the forest to the villages in Duru-Haitemba a community-based forest management was established in the middle of 1990’s. The management succeeded to save the forest with a fire management including several methods of fire preventions and now there is a well grown Miombo forest in the area. This essay deals with the topic how the fire is affecting the Miombo forest. From there, this paper examines how the current community-based forest management is formed concerning the role of fire and the objectives of the locals.</p><p>The conclusion of the essay indicates that the fire has an important role in the ecosystem of the Miombo forest and favour ecosystem dynamics and diversity of the Miombo forest.</p><p>The result of the case study showed that the fire management was poorly adapted to the disturbance of fire and was not widely based on local knowledge or specific needs and objectives of the different villages.</p>