How WUI fire risk-reduction applies to dense urban areas Written by Simona Dossi, Shrey Bohra, and Guillermo Rein On July 19th 2022 the London Fire Brigade experienced its busiest day since World War II assisting many incidents, including several wildfires which spread to buildings. In total 41 London properties, including houses and shops, were destroyed by fires. In July 2022, the UK reached record high temperatures. The heat wave caused a number of wildfires throughout the country: Two major incidents due to fires were declared on July 19th in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, and a third on July 22nd in Surrey due […]
Risk Reduction
Written by Lucía de la Riva Ecosystems have relied on fire for millions of years to survive, and the development of human civilization has been possible thanks to fire. However, over centuries the relationship between modern societies and fire has been deteriorating, and the occurrence of extreme wildfires in the last few decades has increased the fear of this natural element. Researchers and experts agree that what might seem a threat to nature and humans, is in fact a resource to reduce the risk of having large wildfires if used wisely. Integrated Fire Management (IFM) aims at this by using […]
I am investigating European structure vulnerabilities to wildfires under the amazing supervision of Professor Guillermo Rein. I recently joined Prof. Rein’s research team, Hazelab, in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Imperial College London in the UK. Hazelab is dedicated to innovatively studying heat transfer, condensed-phase chemistry and the thermodynamics of fires, both within buildings and in the wild. Prior to joining Pyrolife, I received a Master of Chemical Engineering from the University of Edinburgh. My bachelor’s thesis consisted of a group incinerator plant design, which introduced me to the complexities and beauty of fire chemistry and interdisciplinary teamwork. My […]