Detailed Analysis of the Causes of Bridge Fires and Their Associated Damage Levels

[EN] Although bridge fires pose a real threat, the topic is not covered in current design codes. This paper analyses information related to 154 cases of bridge fires, proposes classifying the damage levels suffered by a bridge during a fire, and establishes the main factors involved in bridge fire damage, which include: type of vehicle involved in the fire and its position, vertical clearance of the bridge, and the type of material composing the deck. The analysis shows that wooden bridges are the most vulnerable and that a tanker carrying gasoline under the bridge, or that is on the bridge and causes a serious spill under the bridge, is responsible for most of the fires that result in the collapse or demolition of the bridge.The research presented in this paper is sponsored by the Spanish Ministry of Education (Research Project BIA 2011-27104). The authors also thank Dr. J. Glassman for providing information for the present study and Dr. V. Yepes for his assistance. The authors are also grateful to D. Terrasa Diaz, J. Perez Armino, B. Black, and R. Campbell, who kindly gave permission to use the photos of Fig. 1.Peris-Sayol, G.; Paya-Zaforteza, I.; Balasch Parisi, S.; Alós-Moya, J. (2017). Detailed Analysis of the Causes of Bridge Fires and Their Associated Damage Levels. Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities. 31(3). https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CF.1943-5509.000097731