Appendix_A_-_Site_Photos.pdf

BMEWS (Ballistic Missile Early Warning System) Thule Air Force Base; Greenland

Fire Protection Survey Christopher M. Giordano/ US Army Corps Engineers; Baltimore District

3-11 January, 2013

PHOTOS FROM THROUGHOUT THE BMEWS FACILITY

Aerial photo of the project site

Elevator Machine Room at the top of the high-rise.

Note lack of sprinkler protection at the ceiling.

Sprinklers are provided throughout the space outside of the elevator machine room.

Sprinkler should be provided inside of the elevator machine room.

Door leading into the elevator machine room at the top of the high-rise.

Note lack of label on edge of door to denote fire rating.

Note lack of door closure. UL fire label is barely visible above the door hinge.

A 1 ½ hour fire door is required to be provided with the appropriate door hardware.

The door frame is permitted to remain and be reused.

Typical EXIT/egress door with slide deadbolt.

This particular photo was taken on the fifth floor of the high-rise from inside of the stairwell.

This is a clear violation of the Life Safety Code (NFPA 101).

If the slide bolt was engaged and the elevator was recalled, it would not be possible to exit the fifth floor.

This is typical throughout the high-rise portion of the BMEWS facility.

Level five of the high-rise. This is an HVAC fan/ mixing box in front of AHU-1, AHU-2 and AHU-3.

The ductwork is greater than 48 inches and is required to be provided with automatic sprinklers underneath. The ductwork creates obstructions which shield the underneath areas from automatic sprinkler coverage.

Typical automatic sprinkler protection under an open-grate catwalk in the high-rise. Sprinklers are provided at the ceiling above the catwalk (cannot be seen in this photo). These regular sprinkler heads are not correct for this application. Sprinklers under open-grate catwalk should be replaced with intermediate-level style heads. See catalog cut of an intermediate-level sprinkler head for a typical example.

Bathroom located on the first floor of the high-rise. No automatic sprinkler protection provided in the bathroom although sprinklers are provided throughout the space above the bathroom.

Alcove behind bathroom on the first floor of the high-rise. No automatic sprinkler Protection provided in the alcove although sprinklers are provided above the space around the bathroom. Automatic sprinkler protection should be extended into the alcove area.

Fire EXIT door on exterior wall on the first floor of the high-rise. This door leads across the roof to an exterior spiral stair which discharges at grade. Note the padlock hasp for a lock. Note the lack of a fire alarm manual pull station adjacent to the door. Note the lack of a lighted EXIT sign above the door.

Beyond the door, a blanket of snow covered the roof impeding egress to the spiral stair.

No lights are provided on the exterior of the high-rise to illuminate the path to the spiral stair.

Without a flashlight or prior knowledge, finding the way off of the roof would be difficult.

Ductwork outside of the main entrance to the UEWR COMPUTER COMPLEX room on the first floor of the high-rise. This ductwork is 48 inches wide and lacks automatic sprinkler protection underneath. Sprinklers are required to be provided under obstructions

48 in width or wider in accordance with NFPA 13.

Photo illustrating penetrations through the concrete first floor of the high-rise on the backside of the UEWR COMPUTER COMPLEX room (first floor of the high-rise).

Note that the through-floor penetration on the left is lacking firestop material. The through-penetration on the right is provided with UL classified firestop material.

Photo of the fire pump room. The 1,000 GPM electric fire pump is in the foreground.

The 1,000 GPM diesel fire pump is in the background. The pre-action sprinkler valves are located on the walls behind the fire pumps.

Photo of the motorized damper at the base of the high-rise stairwell.

Note that there is a junction box and conduit leading to the fire alarm system.

Fire alarm wiring (FPLR twisted-shielded pair) is provided but, is not connected to any device.

Photo of roll-up door in front of the fire truck. Note that this exterior passage is not provided with a single-leaf exit door. Roll-up doors are not recognized by the Life Safety Code (NFPA 101) for egress.

Photo of the roll-up door at opposite end of the building from the fire truck.

Note that this exterior passage roll-up door is provided with a integral single-leaf exit door. Roll-up doors without an integral single-leaf exit door are not recognized by the Life Safety Code (NFPA 101) for egress.

Photo of the wet-chemical nozzles in one of the stainless steel hoods in the kitchen.

Photo of the wet-chemical suppression system for the kitchen. One tank is provided for suppression; the other tank in the photo is a redundant tank to be connected in the event of a system activation. There are two hood suppression systems in the kitchen. An arrangement identical to this photo is provided for the other hood. The tanks are accessed through attic space which is not accessible from the kitchen.

The activation of a wet-chemical system signals the fire alarm system and shunts power to the cooking equipment.

Photo of an open ball cock valve at the end of a sprinkler pipe.

This valve should be provided with a cap to prevent the loss of supervisory air in the event of an accidental operation of the valve.

Typical stair connecting the second floor, mezzanine and first floor levels. Note steel panels providing separation of the stair from the floor space. The steel enclosure is not fire-rated. The door assemblies are not fire rated. The Life Safety Code requires that the enclosure provide a one-hour fire rating and the door assemblies be rated for one-hour.

Atrium area (non-sprinklered) in the original portion of the BMEWS.

This picture taken from the second floor. The basketball court and the fitness area rest on the mezzanine level.

The mezzanine floor is open steel grate covered with plywood and floor tile.

Photo of the basketball court and the fitness equipment on the Mezzanine Level. Note open steel floor grating in the background behind the fitness equipment.

Bathroom constructed on the Mezzanine Level in the new portion of the BMEWS.

Smoke detection provided at the ceiling. There is a pre-action sprinkler system above the ceiling which was not extended into the bathroom at the time of construction.

Unsupervised OS&Y (Outside Stem and Yoke) valve in the “open” position.

This valve is located on the Mezzanine Level at column E7.

This sprinkler system serves the C2H2 computer room area.

Catalog cut of a typical Intermediate Level sprinkler head. Note the oversized deflector which is intended to shield the sprinkler from the cooling effect of a flowing sprinkler head at a higher elevation. All sprinkler heads under open-grating catwalks should be replaced with this type of sprinkler head.

Fine Sediment found in piping while performing emergency maintenance on sprinkler system.

Scaling within pipes due stagnant water sitting over long period of time in an improperly pitched sprinkler pipe.