Fire crackers play a vital role during the festival seasons like deepavali, pongal, dhasara, holi, etc. Large quantity of fire crackers are manufactured in fireworks industries situated in and around Sivakasi town in the Virudhunagar district of Tamil Nadu. However, during the process of manufacturing of fire crackers and allied products, fire accidents occur while handling and mixing of chemicals till finished products are obtained. These accidents cause not only loss of lives especially women and children working inside the industry but also cause damage to nearby manufacturing units and public. The existing guidelines for the construction of fireworks and match works industrial buildings are archaic and empirical which does not include any explosion resisting features. In the month of July 7 of 2009 alone, four fire accidents, including three in registered fireworks units, have taken place in this region, also known for its off-set printing and match industries, killing over 40 workers and injuring many others. Due to increased number of accidents in these industries causing fatalities due to explosion accidents resulting in collapse of building units, there is an urgent need to revise the construction guidelines based on performance oriented design approach. This paper describes the test results performed on brick masonry walls, strengthened with various strengthening techniques and subjected to pyrotechnic explosive loading. After an introductory description of the main features of the blast wave, a brief account of TNT equivalency for pyrotechnic loading is presented. Next, the existing structural requirements as per The Explosives Rule 2008 are presented. The performance of brick masonry model structure with various strengthening techniques under pyrotechnic explosive loading at ground was compared and the observations presented.
Explosive chemicals, Fireworks & Match works industries, Explosion/Blast, TNT equivalent, RCC bands
