Fires in Sewers and Culverts
The susceptibility of various pipe materials to fires should be considered when planning storm sewer, sanitary sewer or culvert projects. The criterion for judging the suitability of a pipe material for buried conditions has not been established, but comparative performance under laboratory conditions can provide definitive guidelines. Because of the frequent, widespread and random occurrence of sewer and culvert fires, it is apparent project specifications should, and in many instances, require fire and smoke resistant materials. This could most easily be accomplished by categorizing smoke density and toxicity in a fashion similar to that established by the National Fire Protection Association for flame spread, and specifying only those class pipe materials which provide the maximum degree of fire resistance and the minimum smoke generation.
