https://doi.org/10.4081/fire.2018.49

Modelling the influence of crowd control railings on the Kiss nightclub evacuation

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2018)
Submitted: 12 December 2017
Accepted: 7 June 2018
Published: 8 August 2018
Fire, Evacuation, Modelling, Nightclub evacuation
Abstract Views: 1145
PDF: 529
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Authors

Guilherme Günther Hennemann
guilhermeghennemann@gmail.com
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos, São Leopoldo, Brazil.
Augusto M. Gil
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos, São Leopoldo, Brazil.
Fabrício L. Bolina
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos, São Leopoldo, Brazil.
Eduardo E.C. Rodrigues
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos, São Leopoldo, Brazil.
Bernardo F. Tutikian
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos, São Leopoldo, Brazil.
George C.B. Braga
Federal District Fire Department, University of Brasília, Brazil.

Fires in crowded gathering places such as nightclubs generate imminent risks to people’s lives, as supported by historical facts. Building evacuation is defined as fundamental to prevent the occurrence of a tragedy. In the Kiss nightclub fire, many people could not reach the exit because of the controlling rails positioned in front of exit doors, as pointed-out by firefighters and survivors. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of these barriers in the escaping of Kiss nightclub, using computerassisted simulation. Four simulations were run, considering two types of capacity, each one with and without the rails. As preliminary analyses, the simulations presented a reduction of nearly 50% of the total time for the nightclub evacuation without the rails, confirming the barriers as a factor that considerably increased evacuation time of the nightclub occupants.

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Supporting Agencies

The work was supported by the Technological Institute on Civil Construction Performance - itt Performance/UNISINOS.

How to Cite

Hennemann, G. G., Gil, A. M., Bolina, F. L., Rodrigues, E. E., Tutikian, B. F., & Braga, G. C. (2018). Modelling the influence of crowd control railings on the Kiss nightclub evacuation. Fire Research, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.4081/fire.2018.49

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