Pyro-terrorism, the purposeful ignition of fire with the intention of causing harm, can make firefighting so complex that it eventually stretches the resources of a firefighting department to the limit. The need to preempt terrorist attacks on buildings has forced fire departments to create counter-terrorism units on an unprecedented scale.
This thesis seeks to answer two questions. First, which approaches should fire departments use for mitigating, preparing for, and responding to pyro-terrorism occurrences within building structures? Secondly, how should fire departments improve their strategies for managing pyro-terrorism events? To get answers to these questions, the thesis draws on the relevant literature on the following conceptual themes: how arson is effective as a tool for random destruction, how to mitigate fire outbreaks in buildings, and the potential weaknesses of the methods used for such mitigation.
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Source: Homeland Security Affairs
- Related story: Pyro-Terrorism: The Threat of Arson-Induced Forest Fires as a Future Terrorist Weapon of Mass Destruction