Emergency evacuation of critical infrastructures, e.g., airports and high density crowd buildings, like shopping centres or entertainment venues, is considered a critical issue in terms of evacuees' safety; bottlenecks may lead to crowd jamming, causing evacuation delays and possibly putting in danger the evacuees. Vulnerable people, such as people with disabilities are more likely to be injured or killed in an emergency, triggered by a natural or man-made disaster; they are rarely consulted on provisions for their safety and most of them are not prepared for emergencies. This case-study involves the evacuation of people with disabilities at an airport terminal due to a chemical exposure event, under a broader emergency evacuation exercise, targeting at: a) proposing a 'Critical Indicators list' for the inclusion of people with disabilities in evacuation exercises of public buildings; b) providing the lessons learned; and c) reflecting on suggestions regarding preparedness, evacuation and triage in such events.

Search and Rescue (SaR) in forest fires is usually applied in a broad area, under foggy or smoky conditions. It mostly involves location of entrapped fire crew or people in between fire fronts, as well as, safely removing them away from the dangerous zone. Moreover, SaR is applied in evacuation of rural residential areas due to heavy smoke impacts, or fire front approaching. Experiences achieved during a field trial, in which unmanned aerial and ground vehicles were deployed and used in a simulated forest fire SaR scenario, are presented. For planning and running the field trial a number of parameters were taken into consideration; logistics, safety plan, contingency plan, different agencies cooperation, time frames and ethical issues. Advantages of using unmanned aerial and ground vehicles in SaR operations include capability of planning and monitoring the operations, integration with the manned resources, connectivity with command and control centers, as well as, coordination of the different unmanned aerial and ground vehicles' platforms. Significant increase of personnel safety is possible through the capabilities of air quality monitoring and search over dangerous areas. Current limitations include limited heat resistance of vehicles and limited flying capability in strong winds and turbulence. Failure of communications is also possible due to rough terrain (autonomy limitations). Against all the limitations, a number of unmanned vehicles already exist that can be adapted successfully for SaR operations in forest fires.

Recent structural collapses were studied in order to identify gaps in technology and to propose priorities in enhancing urban search and rescue (USAR) tools. The time-lines of the events were examined with the scope of extracting critical factors that affect rescue time and can be used to define priorities in tools and technologies development, so that efficient and fast location, recovery and treatment of victims can be achieved. In this context, seven factors were identified: (1) best practices and lessons learned, (2) rescue technology, (3) community involvement, (4) information systems, (5) technology integration, (6) crisis management and (7) available budget. Each of these factors is reviewed, analyzed and discussed with the scope of providing future developments in tools and technology for USAR operations.

Fires are becoming more violent and frequent resulting in major economic losses and long-lasting effects on communities and ecosystems; thus, efficient fire monitoring is becoming a necessity. A novel triple multi-sensor approach was developed for monitoring and studying the burning of dry forest fuel in an open field scheduled experiment; chemical, optical, and acoustical sensors were combined to record the fire spread. The results of this integrated field campaign for real-time monitoring of the fire event are presented and discussed. Chemical analysis, despite its limitations, corresponded to the burning process with a minor time delay. Nevertheless, the evolution profile of CO2, CO, NO, and O2 were detected and monitored. The chemical monitoring of smoke components enabled the observing of the different fire phases (flaming, smoldering) based on the emissions identified in each phase. The analysis of fire acoustical signals presented accurate and timely response to the fire event. In the same content, the use of a thermographic camera, for monitoring the biomass burning, was also considerable (both profiles of the intensities of average gray and red component greater than 230) and presented similar promising potentials to audio results. Further work is needed towards integrating sensors signals for automation purposes leading to potential applications in real situations.

A classification of various categories of entrapped people under the ruins of collapsed buildings after earthquakes, technical failures or explosions is proposed. Type and degree of injury at the moment of building collapse and duration of entrapment are the two basic parameters in this classification. The aim is to provide sources and types of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can be used for establishing a new method for locating entrapped victims based on human chemical signatures. Potential target compounds, among others, are ammonia, acetone, isoprene, dimethylsulfide, dimethyldisulfide and trimethylamine. In this context, the possible neuroendocrine, metabolic and physical responses of potential victims during the different types of entrapment are correlated with the sources of VOCs such as expired air, urine, blood and sweat. The proposed classification scheme was developed as part of an integrated research project which investigates the use of combined audio, video and chemical methods for the early location of entrapped people under the ruins of collapsed buildings.

Improved data processing algorithms along with modelling techniques were employed in order to profile the responses and to assess the analytical capabilities of a system consisting of a mass spectrometer, a camera and a microphone for synchronized chemical, optical and acoustic monitoring of lab-scale fires. The combustion of cotton textile, inkjet white paper and oak wood was monitored by this system in a laboratory based environment under controlled conditions. Signal processing enabled the identification of modalities of different material burning, through the modelling and curve fitting techniques. For the chemical and optical responses, the temporal models with curve fitting were used, whereas for the acoustic signal, spectral analysis was applied for quantifying harmonics. The synergy of the three sensing technologies, augmented by signal processing and modelling, resulted in initial models, characteristic for the fire pattern for each material studied. The potentials emerged by this exploratory work needs further elaboration and elucidation, since the analytical prospective of the proposed approach is considerable and auspicious.

The different aspects of sensors integration, and specifically that of a Mass Spectrometer (MS) with audio and video signals, are investigated for detecting and monitoring indoor fire events. The present study focuses on comparing the capabilities of a variety of chemical sensors, on answering technical challenges in regard to the integration of chemical, audio and video signals and on discussing integration issues for potential field applications. Controlled, small scale fire experiments were carried out in the laboratory. A commercial MS coupled with an in-house developed Pulsed Sampling System (PSS), was used for on-line sampling and near real-time monitoring of the evolved volatiles. The detection limit of PSS-MS was found to be 150ppbv and its linearity was confirmed up to 10ppmv using benzene gas standards. The profiles of ions with m/z 57, 78, 91 and 106, corresponding to indicative Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) of the fire event, were recorded and compared with the concentration profiles of CO2, CO, O2, NO and H/C (C3H8), acquired by the gas sensors of a commercial exhaust gas analyzer. Audio and video signals were recorded by a microphone and a visual camera, simultaneously, with PSS-MS data. Two types of fire experiments were performed in order to simulate field conditions: (a) direct fire monitoring, in case of unobstructed direct fire view and (b) indirect fire monitoring through reflection of audio and video signals on metallic surfaces, for simulating obstacles preventing direct fire view. The information derived by audio and video signals reaffirmed the chemical detection inferences for both types of fire experiments, thus increasing the credibility of each individual method. Occasionally, video, audio and chemical information were complementary, thus counterbalancing the detection limitations of the individual methods. The integrated approach of combining MS data with audio and video signals appears to be a promising method in safety and security applications, where reliable, early detection and real-time monitoring is necessary.

Blends of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) are widely used in products such as hoses and seals. As part of a project that uses NBR/PVC blends for manufacturing forest fire hoses, blends of NBR/PVC with various inorganic fillers, such as Mg(OH)2, china clay (organic modified kaolin) and nano clay (organic modified bentonite) were studied by TG–MS. No significant changes were observed to the type of the polymers’ decomposition products, compared to that of NBR/PVC blend without additives. The most remarkable change was the absence of HCl from decomposition products in the presence of the Mg(OH)2 additive.

As the body decays shortly after death, a variety of gases and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) constantly emanate. Ethical and practical reasons limit the use of human corpses in controlled, time-dependent, intervening experiments for monitoring the chemistry of body decay. Therefore the utilization of pig carcasses serves as a potential surrogate to human models. The aim of this work was to study buried body decay in conditions of entrapment in collapsed buildings. Six domestic pigs were used to study carcass decay. They were enclosed in plastic body bags after being partially buried with rubbles, resembling entrapment in collapsed buildings. Three experimental cycles were performed, employing two pig carcasses in each cycle; VOCs and inorganic gases were measured daily, along with daily visible and thermal images. VOCs were collected in standard sorbent tubes and subsequently analyzed using a Thermal Desorption/Gas Chromatograph/high sensitivity bench-top Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer (TD/GC/TOF-MS). A comprehensive, stage by stage, detailed information on the decay process is being presented based on the experimental macroscopic observations, justifying thus the use of pig carcasses as surrogate material. A variety of VOCs were identified including almost all chemical classes: sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen compounds (aldehydes, alcohols, ketones, acids and esters), hydrocarbons, fluorides and chlorides. Carcasses obtained from a pig farm resulted in more sulfur and nitrogen cadaveric volatiles. Carbon dioxide was by far the most abundant inorganic gas identified along with carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide. Visual monitoring was based on video captured images allowing for macroscopic observations, while thermal camera monitoring which is mostly temperature dependent, resulted in highlighting the local micro-changes on the carcasses, as a result of the intense microbial activity. The combination of chemical and optical methods proved very useful and informative, uncovering hidden aspects of the early stages of decay and also guiding in the development of combined chemical and imaging methods for the detection of dead bodies.

A risk assessment framework was used to assess the risks of forest fire smoke (ffs) to the exposed communities, critical infrastructures and the environment. The present work is focused on the planning and problem formulation phases of this risk assessment procedure. Specifically, as part of the problem formulation phase, integration of the available ffs chemical data was carried out by answering critical questions regarding the ffs. In this way, critical factors have been identified, which mostly define and characterize ffs as a cause of problems and possible symptoms. The integrated information can be used in order to determine assessment endpoints, conceptual models, and risk hypotheses, as presented in an indicative example referred to a simple risk scenario. This work, enhanced with additional risk scenarios, can be used for the next phases of the risk assessment procedure, such as risk analysis and risk characterization. Future research needs for adequate evaluation of ffs impacts on communities, infrastructures, and the environment are also discussed.

A case study of a real forest fire incident is presented, where field measurements held out near the flame-front in smoky, hostile conditions. Permanent gases, such as CO, CO2, NH3, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter (PM2.5, PM10) were monitored. Complexity and possible origin of some of the forest fire smoke components are examined and discussed; styrene identified seems that was originated mostly from the combustion of plastics, due to the forest fire expansion to a plastics storehouse. A new approach, regarding the chemical composition of forest fire smoke and possible origin of smoke components depending on the flame-front expansion (e.g. to rural fields, rural and urban constructions or landfills), is presented in the format of a road-map. The case study tests part of the validity of the road-map, which could be used for air-quality indications and risk assessment in a forest fire. Criteria for monitoring air-quality in a forest fire, for health and safety issues, are also discussed.

In this work a new method called TG-bridge/mass spectrometry is presented, for the on-line monitoring of the pine needles combustion emissions in a common lab furnace. The TG-bridge (thermogravimetry-bridge) system has been developed in-house as a TG-MS (thermogravimetry-mass spectrometry) interface, for TG-MS analysis. In this work, TG-bridge was used for directly sampling of the combustion emissions from the inside of the furnace and transferring them into the mass spectrometer (MS), without disturbing the sub-pressure conditions inside the MS ion source. The effect of Fire-Trol 931 (a long-term fire retardant) on the emissions, produced during the combustion of pine needles, is tested in the lab for future application in the field. It was shown that in treated samples, increased evolution of ammonia and aromatic compounds took place, compared to untreated samples. Maximum concentrations of specific compounds, such as benzene and toluene, evolved during the combustion experiments in the furnace, were determined.

Discriminant Analysis is used as a part of a research, which aims at using expired air analysis for the early location of entrapped people under the ruins of collapsed buildings in an earthquake. This work focuses on the possibility of distinguishing Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in the entrapment area which originate from different sources. Five categories of samples were analyzed by Thermal Desorption-Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (TD-GC–MS). Expired air samples from healthy humans (Category 1) and fasting people (Category 2) were analyzed for studying the VOCs attributed to entrapped people. Headspace air of urban waste disposal bins (Category 3), headspace air of bags with decaying human bodies (Category 4) and urban air samples (Category 5) were analyzed for studying the VOCs attributed to background sources. Discriminant Rotation, a specific type of Discriminant Analysis was applied on the VOCs concentration matrix of the five categories. Combinations of VOCs that best discriminated each category were determined. Cluster Analysis was used to validate the results of Discriminant Analysis. The advantages and limitations of the method are presented and discussed.