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One of the primary goals of the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is prevention or mitigation of this country's losses from hazards that affect the built environment. To achieve this goal, we as a nation must determine what level of performance is expected from our buildings during a severe event, such as an earthquake. To do this, several years ago FEMA contracted with the Applied Technology Council (ATC) to develop next-generation performance-based seismic design guidelines, which would allow stakeholders and their representatives to assess the probable seismic performance of new and existing buildings, and to be able to design or improve their structures to meet their performance goals. These guidelines could be voluntarily used by engineers and designers to: (1) assess and improve the performance of buildings that are currently designed to a building code "life safety" level, which would, in all likelihood, still suffer significant structural and nonstructural damage in a severe event; and (2) more effectively meet the performance targets of current building codes by providing verifiable alternatives to current prescriptive code requirements. This program is based on a long-term plan published as FEMA 445, which was developed with the input of the nation's leading seismic professionals. One of the key requirements in performance based seismic design is the ability to test and evaluate the intended performance of the various structural and nonstructural components that make up a building. The Applied Technology Council (ATC), with funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, commenced work on a multi-year project to development performance-based seismic design guidelines for eventual incorporation in existing standards for the seismic design of new buildings and the upgrade of existing buildings (ATC-58 project). The plan for development of the guidelines is defined in the companion FEMA 445 report, Next-Generation Performance-Based Seismic Design Guidelines, Program Plan for New and Existing Buildings, which was prepared under the ATC-58 project and published by FEMA in 2006. As part of the initial work on the ATC-58 project, interim recommended protocols (documented herein) were developed for testing of structural and nonstructural components and systems found in buildings, for the purpose of establishing their seismic performance characteristics. The protocols were developed through a cooperative effort of ATC and the three National Science Foundation-funded Earthquake Engineering Research Centers (EERCs): the Mid-America Earthquake (MAE) Center at the University of Illinois, Urbana; the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER), University at Buffalo, The State University of New York; and the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research (PEER) Center at the University of California, Berkeley. Two interim protocol types are provided in this document: Interim Protocol I - Quasi-Static Cyclic Testing, which should be used for the determination of performance characteristics of components whose behavior is primarily controlled by the application of seismic forces or seismic-induced displacements (e.g., cladding panels, glazing panels, drywall partitions, piping and ducting system connections, ducts, and various types of anchors and braces); and Interim Protocol II - Shake Table Testing, which should be used to assess performance characteristics of components whose behavior is affected by the dynamic response of the component itself, or whose behavior is velocity sensitive, or sensitive to strain-rate effects (e.g., mechanical and electrical equipment).

One of the primary goals of the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) is to encourage design and building practices that address the earthquake hazard and minimize the resulting damage. This document, Improvement of Nonlinear Static Seismic Analysis Procedures (FEMA 440), reaffirms FEMA's ongoing efforts to improve the seismic safety of new and existing structures in this country. Knowledgeable engineers have long recognized that the response of buildings to strong ground shaking caused by earthquakes results in inelastic behavior. Until recently, most structural analysis techniques devised for practical application relied on linear procedures to predict the seismic behavior of buildings. With the publication of the ATC-40 Report, Seismic Evaluation and Retrofit of Concrete Buildings, in 1996, the FEMA 273 Report, Guidelines for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings, in 1997, and the FEMA 356 Report, Prestandard and Commentary for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings (which replaced FEMA 273), in 2000, nonlinear static analysis procedures became available to engineers providing efficient and transparent tools for predicting seismic behavior of structures. Both the ATC-40 and FEMA 356 documents present similar performance-based engineering methods that rely on nonlinear static analysis procedures for prediction of structural demands. While procedures in both documents involve generation of a "pushover" curve to predict the inelastic force-deformation behavior of the structure, they differ in the technique used to calculate the inelastic displacement demand for a given ground motion. The publication of the above cited documents resulted in the widespread use of these two methods, and engineers have since reported that the two procedures often give different estimates for displacement demand for the same building. Hence the Applied Technology Council (ATC) proposed to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 2000 that a study be conducted to determine the reasons for differing results and to develop guidance for practicing engineers on improved application of these two methods. FEMA agreed to fund the investigation, and in October 2000, ATC commenced a project to provide guidance for improved applications of these two widely used inelastic seismic analysis procedures (ATC-55 Project). The ATC-55 Project had two objectives: (1) the development of practical recommendations for improved prediction of inelastic structural response of buildings to earthquakes (i.e., guidance for improved application of inelastic analysis procedures) and (2) the identification of important issues for future research. Intended outcomes of the project included: 1. Improved understanding of the inherent assumptions and theoretical underpinnings of existing and proposed updated inelastic analysis procedures. 2. Recognition of the applicability, limitations, and reliability of various procedures. 3. Guidelines for practicing engineers to apply the procedures to new and existing buildings. 4. Direction for researchers on issues for future improvements of inelastic analysis procedures. This report (FEMA 440) is the final and principal product of the ATC-55 Project. The document has three specific purposes: (1) to provide guidance directly applicable to the evaluation and design of actual structures by engineering practitioners; (2) to facilitate a basic conceptual understanding of underlying principles as well as the associated capabilities and limitations of the procedures; and (3) to provide additional detailed information used in the development of the document for future reference and use by researchers and others.

This guide shows installers how to attach ducts, pipes, and associated equipment to a building to minimize earthquake damage. Many attachment examples and arrangements are presented, including anchors and the use of special devices called seismic restraint devices. Seismic restraint devices include vibration isolation systems, cable or strut suspension systems, roof attachment systems, and the use of steel shapes.

Among the FEMA documents covering the topic of making existing buildings more resistant to the effects of earthquakes, this volume occupies a unique position: it is the only one that fulfills a historical need. When the decision was made to convert the performance-based Guidelines for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings, FEMA 273, into a prestandard containing mandatory language (FEMA 356), there was considerable concern among design professionals that some of the major characteristics and salient features of the original document (or indeed its very fabric) would be adversely affected in the conversion process. This Global Topics Report is the third in a series of reports chronicling the development of the FEMA 273 NEHRP Guidelines for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings into the FEMA 356 Prestandard and Commentary for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings. The purpose of this report is to provide a narrative discussion and permanent record of the technical changes made to Guidelines as the document evolved into the Prestandard. It is the vehicle by which new technical information was introduced into the Prestandard, as issues were identified and, when possible, resolved by the Prestandard Project Team. For completeness, this report also includes a brief discussion of new concepts introduced to the engineering profession in the publication of the original FEMA 273 Guidelines and FEMA 274 Commentary documents. As the Guidelines were used by the industry, questions arose regarding application of certain procedures, interpretation of some provisions, and results stemming from portions of the methodology. These questions have been formulated into statements, termed global issues, and recorded in this report for reference during the prestandard project and future revisions of the document. At the time the Guidelines were published, it was known that additional research was needed to refine the accuracy and applicability of certain procedures, and analytical studies were required to test and substantiate certain new concepts and philosophical themes. Unresolved issues, reported by BSSC to be present at the time of publication, are incorporated into this report and identified with the designation 'previously unresolved' in the classification of the issue. The purpose of Global Topics Report 1, Identification of Global Issues, dated April 12, 1999, was to formulate a statement and classify global issues that had been identified as of the date of the report. The issues identified in that report were presented and discussed at the ASCE Standards Committee Meeting on March 3, 1999, in San Francisco. The discussions resulted in clarifications to some of the issues, as well as a consensus on the recommended classification of each issue. Comments from Standards Committee members were incorporated into the report, and were used by the Project Team in moving issues toward resolution. Global Topics Report 2 was published on March 22, 2000. The purpose of the second report was to formulate statements for new global issues identified since Global Topics Report 1, and to document resolution of issues that were incorporated into the Second Draft of the Prestandard. This third and final Global Topics Report contains new global issues identified since the publication of the previous two reports, and final resolutions of previously identified issues. The appendices to this report contain the results of special focused studies, which serve as back-up data to the resolution of selected issues. These studies are referenced in the body of this report, where applicable, and included in the appendices for future reference. Upon completion of the Case Studies Project, the final report FEMA 343 Case Studies: An Assessment of the NEHRP Guidelines for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings was made available to the Prestandard Project Team.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) both have a similar goal, which is to encourage design and building practices that address the earthquake hazard and minimize the resulting risk of damage and injury. A related FEMA goal is to present guidance that addresses all hazards in a coordinated manner. This publication is the second and final in a series developed with this related goal in mind, and examines the relationship between seismic resistant design and blast resistant design and attempts to quantify the blast resistance benefit a building designed to withstand high seismic loads would inherently incorporate. This series of publications was developed in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the New York World Trade Center and the subsequent events that led to the formation of DHS and an increased emphasis on preparedness and mitigation of terrorism-related hazards. One issue that FEMA began shortly after that was to examine whether lessons learned in response to natural hazards could be effectively applied to protect building occupants from human threats. Important similarities between seismic and blast loadings (e.g., both can impose extreme horizontal forces on a structure within a small time frame) lend themselves to such examination. The first publication of this series is Blast Resistance Benefits of Seismic Design Phase 1 Study: Performance Analysis of Reinforced Concrete Strengthening Systems Applied to the Murrah Federal Building Design (FEMA 439A, December 2005). This publication was developed based on data from the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in April 1995. That event was documented in The Oklahoma City Bombing: Improving Building Performance Through Multi-Hazard Mitigation (FEMA 277, August 1996). The Phase 1 FEMA 439A report demonstrated that, with such seismic design features in place, the structural system would have been better able to dissipate and manage the blast load effects, reducing or avoiding catastrophic chain-reaction impacts on portions of the building that were not destroyed as a direct result of the bomb blast. This publication, Blast Resistance Benefits of Seismic Design Phase 2 Study: Performance Analysis of Steel Frame Strengthening Systems (FEMA 439B, November 2010), supplements the first phase study by using the same study scenario, but with a steel frame building. A federally owned steel frame building located in a low seismic area was selected from the GSA inventory and a series of seismic strengthening designs were developed based on the original plans. Both of these studies were performed under an agreement with the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) to conduct advanced structural analyses on specific examples of different construction types in order to quantify the blast resistance benefits afforded by appropriately designed seismic resistance features. The purpose of these studies is not to develop or support a hypothesis that seismic design is equivalent to blast-resistant design. The findings of these studies strongly indicate that a building originally designed or later upgraded to address high seismicity will also provide a significant level of blast resistance. Although cost constraints can be daunting for building owners who need to achieve higher levels of protection than conventional construction methods provide, the findings of this study should encourage an owner to consider the potential cost benefits of addressing both types of structural safety hazard in a coordinated or holistic way. Considering the significant blast resistance benefits offered by seismic design, the building owner may find that achieving complete blast protection requires only an incremental cost increase over some types of seismic strengthening described in this report.

Following the two damaging California earthquakes in 1989 (Loma Prieta) and 1994 (Northridge), many concrete wall and masonry wall buildings were repaired using federal disaster assistance funding. The repairs were based on inconsistent criteria, giving rise to controversy regarding criteria for the repair of cracked concrete and masonry wall buildings. To help resolve this controversy, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) initiated a project on evaluation and repair of earthquake damaged concrete and masonry wall buildings in 1996. The ATC-43 project addresses the investigation and evaluation of earthquake damage and discusses policy issues related to the repair and upgrade of earthquake damaged buildings. The project deals with buildings whose primary lateral-force-resisting systems consist of concrete or masonry bearing walls with flexible or rigid diaphragms, or whose vertical-load-bearing systems consist of concrete or steel frames with concrete or masonry infill panels. The intended audience is design engineers, building owners, building regulatory officials, and government agencies. The project results are reported in three documents. The FEMA 306 report, Evaluation of Earthquake Damaged Concrete and Masonry Wall Buildings, Basic Procedures Manual, provides guidance on evaluating damage and analyzing future performance. Included in the document are component damage classification guides, and test and inspection guides. FEMA 307, Evaluation of Earthquake Damaged Concrete and Masonry Wall Buildings, Technical Resources, contains supplemental information including results from a theoretical analysis of the effects of prior damage on single-degree-of-freedom mathematical models, additional background information on the component guides, and an example of the application of the basic procedures. FEMA 308, The Repair of Earthquake Damaged Concrete and Masonry Wall Buildings, discusses the policy issues pertaining to the repair of earthquake damaged buildings and illustrates how the procedures developed for the project can be used to provide a technically sound basis for policy decisions. It also provides guidance for the repair of damaged components.

Following the two damaging California earthquakes in 1989 (Loma Prieta) and 1994 (Northridge), many concrete wall and masonry wall buildings were repaired using federal disaster assistance funding. The repairs were based on inconsistent criteria, giving rise to controversy regarding criteria for the repair of cracked concrete and masonry wall buildings. To help resolve this controversy, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) initiated a project on evaluation and repair of earthquake damaged concrete and masonry wall buildings in 1996. The ATC-43 project addresses the investigation and evaluation of earthquake damage and discusses policy issues related to the repair and upgrade of earthquake damaged buildings. The project deals with buildings whose primary lateral-force-resisting systems consist of concrete or masonry bearing walls with flexible or rigid diaphragms, or whose vertical-load-bearing systems consist of concrete or steel frames with concrete or masonry infill panels. The intended audience is design engineers, building owners, building regulatory officials, and government agencies. The project results are reported in three documents. The FEMA 306 report, Evaluation of Earthquake Damaged Concrete and Masonry Wall Buildings, Basic Procedures Manual, provides guidance on evaluating damage and analyzing future performance. Included in the document are component damage classification guides, and test and inspection guides. FEMA 307, Evaluation of Earthquake Damaged Concrete and Masonry Wall Buildings, Technical Resources, contains supplemental information including results from a theoretical analysis of the effects of prior damage on single-degree-of-freedom mathematical models, additional background information on the component guides, and an example of the application of the basic procedures. FEMA 308, The Repair of Earthquake Damaged Concrete and Masonry Wall Buildings, discusses the policy issues pertaining to the repair of earthquake damaged buildings and illustrates how the procedures developed for the project can be used to provide a technically sound basis for policy decisions. It also provides guidance for the repair of damaged components.

Instructor Guide to CERT Animal Response IIt contains the same information as the pdf which can be downloaded from Ready.gov at no cost. This book contains additional helpful tabs and pages for notes.

One of the primary goals of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) is to encourage design and construction practices that address the earthquake hazard and minimize the potential damage resulting from that hazard. This document, Effects of Strength and Stiffness on Degradation on Seismic Response (FEMA P440A), is a follow-on publication to Improvement of Nonlinear Static Seismic Analysis Procedures (FEMA 440). It builds on another FEMA publication addressing the seismic retrofit of existing buildings, the Prestandard and Commentary for Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings (FEMA 356) and the subsequent publication, ASCE/SEI Standard 41-06 Seismic Rehabilitation of Existing Buildings (ASCE 41). The goal of FEMA 440 was improvement of nonlinear static analysis procedures, as depicted in FEMA 356 and ASCE 41, and development of guidance on when and how such procedures should be used. It was a resource guide for capturing the current state of the art in improved understanding of nonlinear static procedures, and for generating future improvements to those products. One of the recommendations to come out of that work was to fund additional studies of cyclic and in-cycle strength and stiffness degradation, and their impact on response and response stability. This publication provides information that will improve nonlinear analysis for cyclic response, considering cyclic and in-cycle degradation of strength and stiffness. Recent work has demonstrated that it is important to be able to differentiate between cyclic and in-cycle degradation in order to more accurately model degrading behavior, while current practice only recognizes cyclic degradation, or does not distinguish between the two. The material contained within this publication is expected to improve nonlinear modeling of structural systems, and ultimately make the seismic retrofit of existing hazardous buildings more cost-effective.

The vulnerability of gas and liquid fuel pipeline systems to damage in past earthquakes, as well as available standards and technologies that can protect these facilities against earthquake damage are reviewed. An overview is presented of measures taken by various Federal Agencies to protect pipeline systems under their jurisdiction against earthquake hazards. It is concluded that the overall performance of pipeline systems in past earthquakes was relatively good, however, older pipelines and above-ground storage tanks were damaged in many earthquakes. Modern, welded steel pipelines performed well, however, damage occurred in areas of major ground displacements. Available standards and regulations for gas pipelines do not contain seismic provisions. Standards and regulations for liquid fuel pipelines contain only general references to seismic loads. Standards and regulations for above-ground fuel storage tanks and for liquefied natural gas facilities contain explicit seismic design provisions. It is recommended that a guideline for earthquake resistant design of gas and liquid fuel pipeline systems be prepared for Federal Agencies to ensure a uniform approach to the protection of these systems.

The vulnerability of electrical transmission and telecommunication facilities to damage in past earthquakes, as well as available standards and technologies to protect these facilities against earthquake damage are reviewed. An overview is presented of measures taken by various Federal agencies to protect electrical transmission and telecommunication facilities against earthquake hazards. It is concluded that while most new facilities which are owned and operated by Federal agencies are presently designed to provide some, though not necessarily adequate, earthquake resistance, there generally is no effort to retrofit existing facilities. No evidence was found of requirements to protect electrical transmission and communication facilities which have major contractual obligations to serve the Federal Government and only limited seismic design requirements are stipulated for electrical transmission systems constructed with Federal funding. It is recommended that Federal guidelines be developed for minimum levels of seismic design of electrical transmission and telecommunication systems.

Seismic risk management tools, including new seismic engineering technology and data, are now available to assist with evaluating, predicting, and controlling financial and personal-injury losses from future damaging earthquakes. These tools have evolved as a result of scientific and engineering breakthroughs, including new earth-science knowledge about the occurrence and severity of earthquake shaking, and new engineering techniques for designing building systems and components to withstand the effects of earthquakes. As a result, design and construction professionals can now design and construct new buildings with more predictable seismic performance than ever before. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has commissioned and funded the development of this document to facilitate the process of educating building owners and managers about seismic risk management tools that can be effectively and economically employed by them during the building development phase - from site selection through design and construction - as well as the operational phase. This document also recognizes that seismic design professionals (architects and engineers) throughout the United States have varying levels of technical knowledge and experience pertaining to the seismic design of buildings. In areas of moderate and high seismicity, the knowledge and experience is substantially greater than in areas of low seismicity. The intended audience for this document consists of those design professionals (architects and engineers) who typically work with building owners and managers in developing new building projects. FEMA 389. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The specific objective of this study was to identify all of the on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States in 1995, and to analyze the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of deaths in future years. In addition to the 1995 findings, this study includes a special analysis of the use of personal alert safety devices at fatal structure fires and a special report on several fatalities that occurred during technical rescue operations.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of onduty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all onduty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all onduty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 1999, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 1999 overall findings, this study includes special analyses on vehicle collisions and personal protective clothing and equipment use.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2000, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 2001 overall findings, this study includes assessments of trends over the past 5 years and special analyses on heart attacks and ways to immediately prevent future firefighter deaths.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2001, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 2001 overall findings, this study includes assessments of trends over the past 6 years, as well as special analysis on actions that can immediately impact cardiac health and firefighter safety during emergency operations.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2002, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 2002 overall findings, this study includes a study of firefighters killed while responding in their personal vehicles and low cost steps that can be taken to prevent the loss of firefighter lives.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2003, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 2003 overall findings, this study includes two special topics related to alcohol use and fire service risk management.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The USFA is the single public agency source of information for all on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States each year. The unique and specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2004, and to present in summary form the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 2004 overall findings, this study includes two special topics related to healthful eating and operational changes that can have an immediate effect on firefighter safety.

This report describes a recommended methodology for reliably quantifying building system performance and response parameters for use in seismic design. The recommended methodology provides a rational basis for establishing global seismic performance factors (SPFs), including the response modification coefficient, the system over strength factor, and deflection amplification factor, of new seismic-force-resisting systems proposed for inclusion in model building codes. The purpose of this Methodology is to provide a rational basis for determining building seismic performance factors that, when properly implemented in the seismic design process, will result in equivalent safety against collapse in an earthquake, comparable to the inherent safety against collapse intended by current seismic codes, for buildings with different seismic-force-resisting systems. As developed, the following key principles outline the scope and basis of the Methodology: It is applicable to new building structural systems; It is compatible with the NEHRP Recommended Provisions for Seismic Regulations for New Buildings and Other Structures (FEMA, 2004a) and ASCE/SEI 7, Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures, (ASCE, 2006a); It is consistent with a basic life safety performance objective inherent in current seismic codes and standards; Earthquake hazard is based on Maximum Considered Earthquake ground Motions; Concepts are consistent with seismic performance factor definitions in current seismic codes and standards; Safety is expressed in terms of a collapse margin ratio; Performance is quantified through nonlinear collapse simulation on a set of archetype models; Uncertainty is explicitly considered in the collapse performance evaluation. The Methodology is intended to apply broadly to all buildings, recognizing that this objective may not be fully achieved for certain seismic environments and building configurations. Likewise, the Methodology has incorporated certain simplifying assumptions deemed appropriate for reliable evaluation of seismic performance. Key assumptions and potential limitations of the Methodology are presented and summarized. In the development of the Methodology, selected seismic-force-resisting systems were evaluated to illustrate the application of the Methodology and verify its methods. Results of these studies provide insight into the collapse performance of buildings and appropriate values of seismic performance factors. Observations and conclusions in terms of generic findings applicable to all systems, and specific findings for certain types of seismic-force resisting systems are presented. These findings should be considered generally representative, but not necessarily indicative of all possible trends, given limitations in the number and types of systems evaluated. The Methodology is recommended for use with model building codes and resource documents to set minimum acceptable design criteria for standard code-approved seismic-force-resisting systems, and to provide guidance in the selection of appropriate design criteria for other systems when linear design methods are applied. It also provides a basis for evaluation of current code-approved systems for their ability to achieve intended seismic performance objectives. It is possible that results of future work based on this Methodology could be used to modify or eliminate those systems or requirements that cannot reliably meet these objectives.

In 1984, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) initiated a comprehensive, and closely coordinated program to develop a body of knowledge in support of building practices that would increase the ability of existing buildings to withstand the forces of earthquakes. Societal issues inherent in seismic rehabilitation processes also have received attention. At a cumulative cost of about $26million, this FEMA effort has generated two dozen publications and a number of software programs and audio-visual training materials for use by design professionals, building regulatory personnel, educators, researchers, and the general public. The program has proceeded along separate but parallel approaches in dealing with both private sector and federal buildings. Already available from FEMA to private sector practitioners and other interested parties is a "technical platform" of consensus criteria on how to deal with some of the major engineering aspects of the seismic rehabilitation of buildings. This technical material comprises a trilogy with supporting documentation: a method for the rapid identification of buildings that might be hazardous in an earthquake and which can be conducted without gaining access to the buildings themselves; a methodology for a more detailed evaluation of a building that identifies structural flaws that have caused collapse in past earthquakes and might do so again in future earthquakes, and a compendium of the most commonly used techniques of seismic rehabilitation. Along with this volume, the culminating activity in the field of seismic rehabilitation is the completion of a comprehensive set of nationally applicable guidelines with commentary on how to rehabilitate buildings so that they will better withstand earthquakes. Known as the AEJRP Guidelines for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings (FEMA 273) and the Commentary on the Guidelines for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings (FEMA 274), these volumes, the results of a multiyear, multimillion dollar effort, represent a first of its kind in the United States. The Guidelines allow practitioners to choose design approaches consistent with different levels of seismic safety as required by geographic location, performance objective, type of building, use or occupancy, or other relevant considerations. The Guidelines documents also include analytical techniques that will assist in generating reliable estimates of the expected earthquake performance of rehabilitated buildings. This extensive platform of materials fills a significant gap in that portion of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) focusing on the seismic safety of existing buildings. It is expected that, with time, the Guidelines will be referenced or adapted by standards-setting groups and model building code organizations and will thereby diffuse widely into building practices across the United States. This volume complements the technical materials principally oriented to design professionals in the Guidelines documents. Because of the complexities and possible disruption caused by seismic rehabilitation projects, this volume's title, Planning for Seismic Rehabilitation: Societal Issues, calls attention to two important themes: that careful planning can minimize possibly difficult societal problems and that there exists a wide range of societal issues that maybe more significant in rehabilitation projects than in new construction. In many ways, this publication is intended to provide a "heads up" to those who are considering individual or multiple building, construction class or use, or area-focused seismic rehabilitation efforts.

The title of this document, FEMA 356 Prestandard and Commentary for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings, incorporates a word that not all users may be familiar with. That word-prestandard-has a special meaning within the ASCE Standards Program in that it signifies the document has been accepted for use as the start of the formal standard development process, however, the document has yet to be fully processed as a voluntary consensus standard. The preparation of this prestandard was originally undertaken with two principal and complementary objectives. The first was to encourage the wider application of the NEHRP Guidelines for the Seismic Rehabilitation of Buildings, FEMA 273, by converting it into mandatory language. Design professionals and building officials thus would have at their disposal a more specific reference document for making buildings more resistant to earthquakes. This volume fully meets this first objective. The second objective was to provide a basis for a nationally recognized, ANSI-approved standard that would further help in disseminating and incorporating the approaches and technology of the prestandard into the mainstream of design and construction practices in the United States. How successfully this volume achieves the second objective will become apparent with the passage of time, as this prestandard goes through the balloting process of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Several additional related efforts were ongoing during the development of this prestandard. A concerted effort was made to gather any new information produced by these endeavors. Topics varied considerably, but typically covered approaches, methodologies, and criteria. Whenever an analysis of the new information disclosed significant advances or improvements in the state-of-the-practice, they were included in this volume. Thus, maintaining FEMA 273 as a living document-a process to which FEMA is strongly committed-is continuing.

This guide outlines the essentials for establishing an arson strike force. It begins with a definition of the concept, presents a brief description of how such a unit might respond to an incident, proceeds through the planning steps for single and multi-jurisdictional strike forces, and outlines key elements in their organization and management.

This project was performed by the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) and was supported by the Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). SFPE is an engineering association for advancing the science and practice of fire protection engineering. Water supply is an important subject to the fire service, fire protection engineers, and city managers. These manuals (Volume 1: Water Supply System Concepts and Volume II: Water Supply Evaluation Methods) are intended to provide a reference for concepts and terminology to facilitate communication and understanding between these organizations.

This project was performed by the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) and was supported by the Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). SFPE is an engineering association for advancing the science and practice of fire protection engineering. Water supply is an important subject to the fire service, fire protection engineers, and city managers. These manuals (Volume 1: Water Supply System Concepts and Volume II: Water Supply Evaluation Methods) are intended to provide a reference for concepts and terminology to facilitate communication and understanding between these organizations.

This handbook's primary objective is to describe statistical techniques for analyzing data typically collected in fire departments. Motivation for the handbook comes from the belief that fire departments collect an immense amount of data, but do very little with it. A compelling reason for collecting data is a legal requirement for documenting incidents; however, incident reports provide a more beneficial service to fire departments by providing insight into the nature of fires and injuries.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the U.S. Fire Administration of onduty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The specific objective of this study is to identify all onduty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the U.S. and it protectorates in 2010 and to analyze the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2007, and to analyze the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years. In addition to the 2007 overall findings, this study includes information on seatbelt use for firefighters and efforts to encourage seatbelt use.

This report continues a series of annual studies by the USFA of on-duty firefighter fatalities in the United States. The specific objective of this study is to identify all on-duty firefighter fatalities that occurred in the United States and its protectorates in 2011 and to analyze the circumstances surrounding each occurrence. The study is intended to help identify approaches that could reduce the number of firefighter deaths in future years.

The objective of this study was to identify on-duty firefighter fatalities, occurring in the U.S. in 1994, and analyze the circumstances surrounding firefighter fatalities. They study is intended to help identify potential approaches that could reduce the number of deaths that occur each year. In addition to the 1994 findings, this study includes a special analysis of wildland firefighting fatalities, which claimed an unusually high number of lives this year, and an analysis of risk management and recognition in the fatal incidents.