Quote:
Originally Posted by twoNeurons
The amazing thing is that there are really old wooden buildings that have survived serious fires, unfortunately the wood we use today often isn't old enough.
Old-growth forest trees that have grown slowly over their life have a remarkable resiliency. In old-growth forests, only 3% of the light reaches the forest floor. Trees grow really, really, slow... but at those speeds, they end up being extremely dense and resilient to all kind of disasters.
When we plant now, we plant for optimal growing speed. Ask any firefighter and they'll tell you that modern houses are basically made up of kindling. The spaces in the wall, the porous wood-framed construction and flammable materials means modern houses are more susceptible to burning than 70–80 years ago.
I wouldn't be surprised if what caused Notre Dame's devastation to be so bad was a lot to do with the wood scaffolding than the wood inside, but that's just my speculation.
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Thanks for sharing. Obviously, many here are still pretty blind to the dangers of wooden houses and apartments. People should know that wood is supposed to burn, otherwise it won't be wood. Can't blame them though cuz it's the way mass construction is done here, and people are wired to think that wooden structures are a given.