It's definately not impossible ...subtle_eyeFebruary 9 2009, 10:06:24 UTC
a combination of a) reflective foil and woven silica to keep radiant heat out b) compressed air to maintain overpressure while the firefront passes (if it's good enough for NBC, it's fine for smoke) c) sufficient structural integrity to survive things falling on it. (exploding cars seems like the greatest risk)
His thesis is that the solution is a 'dugout' which is simply a trench which has an earth roof and traditionally, wet hessian sacks covering the entrance. He contends that in the 1939 bushfires most of the people who died were in saw milling sites that didn't have or had an insufficient dugout for all the people that worked there. Apparently by law they had to have one attached to the all saw mills.
Pages 7-9 of the book (thanks to google books) has a description of one of the few instances in the 39 bushfire where one of the few people died in the bushfire while in a dugout. That section of the book seems to describe the tragic circumstances of that bushfire.
The air being sucked upwards to fuel the fire is a huge problem with the below ground bunker as a bushfire defence. I sure as hell wouldn't be heading underground unless it was very deep like a cave system. The California forest service actually uses metal houses on struts as fire spotting towers as well as fire safe houses. Basically the best place to be in a bush fire is in a largish clear area with low fuel (i.e. a large clearing, middle of a large lake or up high on a nonflamable structure). The largish area is as much about the oxygen as the distance from the heat. Fox holes are a last resort. If you're interested the Australian Engineering Standards contains fall out shelter min specs.
Comments 3
a) reflective foil and woven silica to keep radiant heat out
b) compressed air to maintain overpressure while the firefront passes
(if it's good enough for NBC, it's fine for smoke)
c) sufficient structural integrity to survive things falling on it.
(exploding cars seems like the greatest risk)
If this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_shelter can save lives, and it's light enough to be carried, surely it's possible to construct something subterranean.
It just becomes another thing to get checked out at the beginning of fire season.
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His thesis is that the solution is a 'dugout' which is simply a trench which has an earth roof and traditionally, wet hessian sacks covering the entrance. He contends that in the 1939 bushfires most of the people who died were in saw milling sites that didn't have or had an insufficient dugout for all the people that worked there. Apparently by law they had to have one attached to the all saw mills.
Pages 7-9 of the book (thanks to google books) has a description of one of the few instances in the 39 bushfire where one of the few people died in the bushfire while in a dugout. That section of the book seems to describe the tragic circumstances of that bushfire.
Reply
Fox holes are a last resort. If you're interested the Australian Engineering Standards contains fall out shelter min specs.
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