The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-11-10
Fire Protection Article of In
terest in View of Local
Conditions
WOODEN BUILDINGS
ALWAYS A HAZARD
CONGREGATIONS Almost Always Start in
Wooden Sections irebrands in Wind
Especially Dangerous = fuzzy Sur
face Becomes Like finder.

Apropos Of the proposition to adopt
building code in Brattleboro and OF
the meeting to be held this evening in
the engine house to consider the mat
ter, the following article from Fire Pro
lection, an insurance magazine, is in
tercsting:
The menace OF the wooden shingl,
roof is emphasized in recent official
bulletin by the National Fire Protec-
tion association, which has been given
wide circulation. 1t points out that in
nearly every American city of conse
duence the mercantile center is sur
rounded by residence districts con
structed almost entirely Of wood In
the smaller municipalities the wooden
buildings invade the mercantile center.
either composing it entirely or to a con
siderable degree.
a contlagration seldom gets under
way in brick, stone and concrete see
ton; it starts in a wooden section, and
if the wind is right and the building,
are dry it gains sufficient magnitude
20 destroy the brick. stone and concrete
section also Every wooden building
it is pointed out, is a fire hazard in it
self, and, if burning, endangers every adj
iaccnt building, howsoever constructed.
But (and here is the real crux of
the matter) most wooden buildings
possess a special and particular men
ace, not only to adjacent wooden build
ings (aIso possessing this menace
even when separated by wide open
| spaces, or fire barriers in the shape OF
intervening fire resisting structures.
| Touching on this point the bulletin
| (Which is copiously illustrated, showing
both the fire resisting qualities CT
asbestos shingles and composition roofs
and the susceptibility to destruction OF
/ buildings covered with wooden shin
gles) says:
Burning shingles can be carried
great distances by the wind or draft
Of eonilagration. and when they
alight in their turn en- other dry shin
giles. they make fearful havoc The
modern shingle is thin. and the ma
j chinery which makes it leaves fuzzy
surface which, after a period ol
drought, becomes like finder. Without
/ Shingle roofs flying brands would no
be carried over the brick center of ;
city by the wind. The wooden shinglt
furnishes both the fire brand and Tia,
finder which it ignites.
One fire Of amy magnitude is al
an ordinary fire department can cop
with at one time. Even in wooden
sections fire can be stopped iron
communicating 10 contiguous building
where the wooden shsngle is not
factor. Fires in wooden sections o.
windy days quickly get beyond contro
whore there are wooden shingles t
carry the fire ia other wooden shiugle,
a dozen fires may thus be started ovc
il radius of mile or more while tn
department is fighting the original fir,
1.-THE argument that shin9le roof
are safe enough outside of conilagri
tion areas is continually refuted b
facts to the contrary. Recently tw
separate groups of summer cottage
each cottage we'll detached from tn
/: other. burned. at Narragansett Pie
Il. l. The cottages were two and on,
/ half stories high. with walls and ROOF
covered with shingles The fire starte
in dwelling at the extreme end of on
of the groups. 1t was caused by a d.
, fective chimney. Dor want of hos
and water pressure the local fire d