I recently received an email with some pictures attached to it. The pictures were taken by Victor Dane, a firefighter in St. Louis County.  He took these pictures not far from where he works and has been kind enough to share.

As you can see, these are shipping/storage containers that are being stacked and pushed together to create a building.  Here is what Victor says about the containers and what they are being used for:

There was a Night Club called City Slickers.  It burned down and the owner wanted a building that would be fire proof and bullet proof.  These are whole cargo shipping containers.  There will be some rooms in these containers I was told. The builder told me building with these containers is very common in the South.  I need to get updated photos now.  The building now has siding all over it.  You can not tell it is a metal building.  I hope the local FD remembers this if it burns again.  The walls will be very difficult to breech.


As soon as I get updated photos I will pass them along.  We need to remember that with the economy and other factors, contractors and builders will cut corners however necessary to save a buck.  We need to also remember why it is so important to get out and know our area.

I post the importance of this frequently, but I just don’t think you can emphasize it enough.  You must know what is going on in your jurisdiction.

Make it interesting and stop at a building and put up your ladder just for practice. Sit and consider the obstacles or water supply issues with a certain area or complex.  Just get out and do it.

In addition to the fact that these may be being built with no code enforcement, what other tactical issues can you identify with this situation?

What will happen to the heat in this make shift building?

How will ventilation happen with the over roof?

There are a number of issues that must be identified and put into tactical considerations.  List your concerns and tactics for this building.

http://firefightersenemy.com

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There has been articles about using shipping containers family houses, apartments, hotels and places to show art.
Some fire depts have used them to build burn and training towers. Military have used them to build barracks buildings.
These are some mighty strong building blocks! It would take an extreme amount of heat to do any damage to the containers themselves. Even then I don't see them buckling or folding, especially only two layers tall. Looks like the weakest thing in this structure is the roof. Probably supported by lightweight metal trusses. Rated at 15 minutes?
Shipping Container homes and office complexes are becoming more and more common here in Australia.

I actually had an office made from a container for a couple of years. It looked like a container on the outside but inside was a polished timber floor, laminate walls, benches, cupboards, running water, power, etc just like any other home or office.

Here's some pix off the net, not my office....





I'm a believer then. I've noticed a lot of folks in rural areas using these for storage. I'll be more aware now thanks to this post.
I gotta tell you, they don't look bad.
Aren't there training towers being built from shipping containers?
When I had my "office", once inside, you had no clue that you were in a container. It was as nice as any other "normal" office.

We looked seriously as the houses as well. From memory a 40ft container/house, one bedroom, bathrrom, lounge room was about $40,000.00
They say there are so many shipping containers that come in from China and they don't get sent back and just get stacked at the ports and just sit there.
I have seen where the walls of three containers can be cut out and braced and pinned together to make one big room.
They can be coverted to be used for disaster relief use as temp shelters for cooking, bathroom and bunk units. They could be better than FEMA trailers.
You have an address for the houses? It seems that this may be a cheaper route than renting for the next 2 years in downstate NY.

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