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Baltimore City Detention Center - Facility Abandonment/Facility Demolition

Discipline:

Fire Protection Engineering

Baltimore, Maryland

Square Footage:

Eight Buildings

The Baltimore City Detention Center (BCDC) includes six buildings which are abandoned and are planned for demolition in the near future. However, these buildings are physically connected to the other buildings on site through bridges and underground tunnels. Also, some of sprinkler piping and other utilities such as steam piping, electrical power conduits serving the active buildings pass through the abandoned buildings.


  • F&H was  commissioned by the Department of General Services to survey the buildings and prepare a report for the Fire Marshall’s approval for isolating the abandoned buildings and related sprinkler services and utilities from the  active buildings and structures.


  • Review of existing fire protection, architectural, mechanical and electrical drawings for men’s and women’s detention centers, and other buildings and  survey of the referenced buildings (for identification of combustible materials) and related fire protection, mechanical and electrical systems. The combustible materials were identified and drawings were prepared for fire rated separation of interconnected abandoned buildings from the      active buildings and structures.


  • Reports at various stages of our work was submitted to the Fire Marshall for his review and comments. The using agency was directed to remove the combustible materials such as Diesel fuel from generators, grease from the kitchen grease interceptor, oil from the hydraulic elevators, window      plexiglass covering, wood partitions and furniture from the site. Several  meetings were held with the Fire Marshall to review the project and a signed and sealed copy of the report was submitted to the Fire Marshall upon   completion of the project.


  • The fire  protection engineer coordinated with mechanical and electrical engineers concerning various utilities routing through the abandoned buildings which  serve the active buildings and proposed alternate means of providing power and utilities to the active buildings.

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