Industrial hygiene method for assessing toxic contamination in smoke and fire-damaged homes

This article presents a new, more efficient and accurate method for assessing fire and toxic smoke losses to structures, the risks associated with such, and the scope necessary to restore an affected property to its pre-fire loss condition. While the commonly utilized field practice of handling fires, using the S700 as a guide, has been to focus on visible damage and particulate accumulations, to test for the presence of soot, char, and ash (sometimes referred to as fire residue), and to attempt remediation and cleaning of the property. The method proposed herein is to test for microscopic particulates commonly produced by fire, including heavy metals, dioxins, and furans, to determine if toxic levels of identified particulates are present. When toxic levels are present, standard airflow and waterflow dynamics, as well as secondary contamination circulate the toxic particles throughout the property rendering the property effectively totaled as a result of the impracticality of alternative handling methods.