"Heat was a factor in the collapse of The World Trade Center. The heat generated by the burning jet fuel resulted in expansion and thus weakening of the steel superstructure. Coupled with the intense pressure of the burn, the building began to collapse. The weight of the collapsing structure created additional weight on the lower floors, eventually resulting in the collapse of the entire structure.
We cannot be blind that steel has it's shortfalls. While wood will ignite at between 400 and 600 degree's, steel will start losing strength at around 600 degrees and loses 40 percent of of its strength at 1,100 degree's, well within the temperature's that develop in common fires. Though wood will burn, the sheer mass of wood needed to match the strength of steel in any given construction project could mean that a wooden structure will withstand a fire longer." Introduction To Security. 8th Edition, Chapter 12, 9.2 Vulnerability of Fire, page 262.
I also will add building's were not constructed to withstand Large Jet Airliners that weigh several tons with tons of jet fuel crashing into them at hundreds of miles per hour, es building's that sway or earthquake resistant ones and all other buildings, structural integrity is compromised from the force of the crash alone.
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