The U.S. Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has called on the organizations that develop building and fire safety codes, standards and practices, and the state and local agencies that adopt them, to make specific changes to improve the safety of tall buildings, their occupants and first responders. The recommendations result from the agency's investigation of the fires and collapses of New York City's World Trade Center (WTC) towers following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Based on the findings of the most detailed examination of a building failure ever conducted, NIST is making 30 recommendations. "We believe these recommendations are both realistic and achievable within a reasonable period of time, and should greatly improve the way people design, construct, maintain and use buildings, especially high-rises,"
