Application of a Physics-Based Simulation Model to Examine Post-Earthquake Fire Spread

For 50 years, post-earthquake fire spread models used the basic empirical, macro approach developed by Hamada in 1951 Hamada, M. 1951. On Fire Spreading Velocity in Disasters, Tokyo: Sagami Shobo. (in Japanese) Google Scholar]. Recently, however, a few physics-based models have emerged in which different modes of fire spread (e.g., radiation, branding) are modeled separately, more realistically, and in more detail. Using a case study for Los Angeles, this article illustrates how a new physics-based model developed by the authors can be used to estimate how much, how fast, and where fires spread, and also to provide insight into how fires spread and factors that influence fire spread.