An analysis of the emergency response system of the 1996 Channel tunnel fire

Jaime Santos-Reyes*, Alan N. Beard

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    13 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    The paper presents the results of an analysis of the ‘emergency response system’ at the time of the 1996 Channel tunnel fire accident. In particular, the analysis focuses on the events that unfolded once the incident train had stopped; i.e., the evacuation of the passengers and the train crew. The approach has been the use of a ‘Tunnel Fire Safety Management System’ (‘TFSMS’) Model as a ‘template’ for comparison with the ‘emergency system’ in place at the time. In particular, responding to the following question being addressed: could the time of evacuation of the incident train crew and passengers be less that the time it took? The answer is Yes. Some relevant findings associated with the deficiencies in the existing 'system' have been highlighted by the model.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)121-139
    Number of pages19
    JournalTunnelling and Underground Space Technology
    Volume65
    Early online date11 Mar 2017
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - May 2017

    Keywords

    • Channel tunnel fire
    • Emergency response
    • Railway accident
    • TFSMS model

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Building and Construction
    • Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology

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