Bushfire-enhanced wind load on structures

The association of bushfires with wind has long been recognised, but the mechanism of this interaction has not received due attention. In the current study, a computational fluid dynamics approach was used to reveal the impact of fire-enhanced wind on low-rise building structures. This paper presents the results of a numerical study on bushfire, wind and structure interactions. The fire-enhanced wind was found to significantly distort the wind velocity profile and enhance turbulence properties, and alter the pressure coefficient distributions around a simple building structure represented by a 6 m cube. In particular, the simulated results revealed a significant increase in windward wall pressure coefficient due to the presence of a fire source upstream compared to that without fire. These findings are expected to have a significant impact on the development of improved design practice for the protection of buildings from fire-induced wind storms.