With the fiery inferno of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel (MOH) in Beijing on February 9, 2009, the obvious point of comparison is with World Trade Center 7 (WTC7) on September 11, 2001. Yes, the buildings were very similar in size and construction. Their heights were comparable, 522 ft. for MOH, vs. 610 ft. for WTC7. But the differences in the magnitude of the fires and ultimate results were dramatic, in the extreme.
Fires in the MOH raged on every floor, reportedly requiring between 13 and 30 minutes before the entire building was engulfed in flame (first photo). In contrast, WTC7 had small fires on only a few floors at a time, typically burning the office materials, then moving on. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) reported fires on only 10 floors.
With the MOH engulfed by more extensive fires, the dramatic differences in eventual outcomes for the two buildings are even more astounding. Once the fires were out, the MOH remained standing (second photo). This is not at all surprising, since all previous steel-framed high rises have remained standing (other than WTC7, says NIST) after having been engulfed by fire. WTC7, on the other hand, was demolished, falling straight down into its own footprint, with only the smallest of office fires in comparison to the MOH fires. Remarkably, NIST finally acknowledges a 2-second freefall drop extending approximately 8 stories.
Researchers at AE911Truth are very interested in making more detailed comparisons between these two buildings, the fires, and the aftermaths. Check back for the latest information.
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