Fire

The presence of three basic factors together is liable to cause combustion and the spread of a fire. These are: flammable materials, oxygen, and heat.

1. Incorrect use of appliances such as using gas or even electric cooking stoves to heat the house. Similarly, using damaged or unsound appliances and systems (such as using a gas delivery system installed by an unlicensed installer or an uninspected system) is a fire hazard.
2. Carelessness, forgetfulness or neglect such as leaving a fire burning, setting a fire near flammables, smoking in bed.
3. Improper and unauthorized use of electricity such as using a damaged electric blanket or an improper electrical outlet.
4. Children’s play such as playing with matches, making slogans outlined in fire in youth groups and schools.
5. Natural causes such as lightning strikes, volcanic eruptions, sunbeams.

a.      Fires of flammable solids: This includes all solids that are flammable such as wood, cloth, rubber, and more.

b.      Fires of flammable liquids: This includes all liquids that are flammable such as fuel, diesel fuel, alcohol, tar, and more.

c.    Gas fires: This includes the entire family of flammable gases such as hydrogen,     acetylene, and more.

Flammable gases, in certain ratios, might also cause explosions.

d.      Electrical fires: Any fire in which electricity is involved, whether passively or actively, is an electrical fire.

e.      Light metal fires: This includes magnesium, lithium and aluminum, as well as their compounds.

The basic principle for putting out any fire is to remove one of the three factors of a fire or to separate them. There are three basic methods for putting out a fire:

a.       Isolate: The purpose of this method is to isolate the burning articles from the articles that are not on fire. This method gets rid of the flammable material, one of the three factors in a fire. This method minimizes the extent of the fire. For example, moving a burning newspaper away from curtains, turning off the cooking gas, etc.

b.      Smother: The purpose of this method is to cut off the fire’s oxygen supply. When the flow of oxygen is cut off, the burning gradually dies down. This method gets rid of the oxygen, one of the three factors in a fire.

c.       Cool: The purpose of this method is to lower the temperature of the fire to a temperature below the combustion point of the specific material. This method gets rid of the heat, one of the three factors in a fire.

In addition, there is a fourth method:

d.       Stop the chemical reaction that constitutes the burning: Using inert gases or fire-fighting powders and foams.

Choosing the specific fire-fighting method depends on the type and scope of the fire and on the means available to the fire-fighters,

It is crucial to remember that you should attempt to put out a fire only if you are sure you can control it.

It should be kept someplace accessible so that it is available and easy to get to in an emergency. It is a good idea to mark it in a prominent way so that it can be seen also in the dark.

There are many different sorts of fire extinguishers of different weights available – 6 kg., 12 kg., 15 kg. – and the formulation of the contents varies. Israeli Standard no. 129, section 2, contains specific instructions for choosing, placing, and marking fire extinguishers.

In do-it-yourself shops and hardware stores.

Yes, they do. Only licensed fire extinguisher maintenance technicians are authorized to do any sort of maintenance work on fire extinguishers. Perform monthly checks to ensure that your fire extinguisher is in good working order, using the instructions given in Israeli Standards no. 129, section 1.

You cannot reuse a fire extinguisher once the safety pin has been released and it has been used. Refilling the extinguisher should be done only by a licensed fire extinguisher maintenance technician. When the extinguisher is being serviced, another extinguisher of equal fire-fighting power should be kept in its stead.

• ·         Look at the pressure gauge. The hand should be in the green zone, signifying the presence of pressure. If the hand is in the red zone, the extinguisher is useless.

  ·         Make sure the extinguisher is whole, i.e. that it isn’t chipped or missing handles.

  ·         Look above the hand of the gauge. There should be a plastic seal that holds the metal safety pin connecting the operating handle to the body of the extinguisher.

  ·         In order to operate the extinguisher, you must tear off the plastic seal, and pull the metal safety pin out. The operating handle is now released and the extinguisher is ready for use.

  ·         Hold the hose with one hand (so that it doesn’t fly off to the sides from the pressure), and hold and press the operating handle with the other.

  ·         With some extinguishers (with powder stored separately), it is sometimes necessary to press down the operating handle a second time to release the stream of extinguishing materials.

  ·         Use an extinguisher in the direction of the wind. Spray above head level in order to smother the fire; do not spray the fire directly.

• ·         Keep your vacation grounds clean and neat.

  ·         Do not make an open fire or smoke near flammable materials.

  ·         Do not discard burning cigarette butts and matches.

  ·         When using cooking gas, supervise the process at all times.

  ·         Keep the area free of weeds. Set up cooking fires and camp fires only in designated areas, and at camp sites in clearings.

  ·         In forests, clear away deadwood and keep fire-lines clean.

  ·         Make sure that the electrical systems at the campsite are in good working order, so as to avoid short circuits and fires.

  ·         Do not use electrical systems and appliances without supervision.

  ·         Make sure to extinguish bonfires and barbecues completely.

• ·         Alert the people around you, and immediately set to work to extinguish it.

  ·         Do not wait, and do not allow the fire to spread. Locate it and put it out when it is still in its early stages.

  ·         Use the camp-ground’s fire-fighting equipment and any sort of equipment you have with you, such as water hoses, buckets, a fire extinguisher, wet sacks, paddles/racquet, etc.

   

  If you discover the fire after it has already spread, call the fire department immediately!!!

·         Cut down all weeds around chicken coops, barns, greenhouses, and living areas in order to prevent the spread of a fire.

·         Comply with fire safety directions when handling kerosene, diesel and electrical stoves, and gas installations.

·         Comply with fire safety directions when handling fuel, oils, and other combustibles.

·         Comply with fire safety directions when using electricity.

·         Comply with fire safety directions in halls used for presentations and conferences.

·         Comply with fire safety directions at gun and ammunitions depots.

·         Make sure to keep weeds down in the forests and fields in and around your community, and to remove all garbage and waste.

·         Keep fire-lines clear in forested areas and fields.

·         Report the fire to the fire marshal in your community or to the local fire-fighters.

·         Disconnect the electricity in the vicinity of the fire.

·         Make sure that human life is not at risk.

·         Follow safety precautions.

·         Report this to the fire-fighters and rescue personnel.

·         Help evacuate the injured, if necessary.

·         Help get more manpower and equipment to the scene, if necessary.

A burn is defined as an injury to the skin or mucous membranes by one of the following agents: excessive hear, excessive cold, chemicals, and electricity.

Heat burns are liable to occur as the result of exposure to various sources of heat: the sun, hot liquids, hot steam, hot metals, open flames, and a flash following an explosion.

Note: Burns are familiar to virtually everyone. Very few people have never been burned. Generally, these burns are minor.

Very often, when the burn is not very deep, the victim him/herself can treat the burn, at least initially. Often, this treatment may prevent burn damage within a short period of time, and render any further treatment unnecessary. Severe and deep burns must be treated by a physician.

a.       Loss of fluids: This is the primary injury in the first hours after the burn. This can be dealt with by an intravenous fluid drip.

b.       Loss of heat and energy: The injured must be evacuated while covered in a clean sheet in order to prevent a rapid drop of body temperature.

c.       Infection: This jeopardizes the life of the injured at a later stage, and is the main problem of burn victims after they’ve overcome the loss of fluids.

d.       General phenomena of the digestive tract: Burns over large areas of the body might cause the victim’s stomach to swell and induce vomiting. Therefore, a burn victim must not be allowed to eat or drink, and must be encouraged to lie on his/her side to prevent the possibility of him/her choking on vomit inhaled into the lungs.

e.       Inhalation burns: Inhaling overheated air and smoke into the airways causes inhalation burns. If the victim was in an enclosed space where a fire took place or was discovered unconscious near the site of a fire, there is a concern that s/he has been injured by inhaling poisonous fumes or poorly oxygenated air. Carbon monoxide (CO) is responsible for most such poisonings; another poisonous gas is cyanide (CN), which is released when many materials, including plastics, burn.

f.         Direct injury from the heat: This is usually caused to the upper airways, above the glottis. This make cause edema, thereby wholly or partially obstructing the flow of air to the lungs. The symptoms of such an obstruction are hoarseness and harsh breathing sounds, and this requires the immediate evacuation of the victim to a treatment center with a doctor who can quickly insert a breathing tube into the trachea.

It is possible to classify burns into three degrees of severity, depending on the depth of the injury:

·         First degree burn – superficial: This is the mildest type of burn, in which the injury caused to the skin is limited to the upper layer of the epidermis only. These burns hurt a lot at first, but tend to disappear within a few days, with peeling of the upper layer of the skin.

·         Second degree burns – partial depth: This is a burn of medium severity in which the damage includes the epidermis and part, but not all, of the dermis. The upper layer of the skin may tear, and the burned area is covered by a fluid-filled blister. The blistering may occur up to several hours after the burn. The burned area swells with edema, and looks moist and sweaty. The victim suffers intense pain, and the burn itself is extremely sensitive. Even air moving over the burn causes the victim intense pain.

·         Third degree burns – full depth of the skin: This type of burn causes total destruction of the skin, i.e.: the epidermis and the dermis are completely destroyed. At times, injuries may go deeper still, and affect subdermal tissue such as fat, muscle, and bone. The depth of the injury depends not only on the temperature of whatever caused the burn, but also on the length of time the skin was exposed. Dead skin, composed of coagulated proteins, creates a thick and inflexible layer, called an eschar, a type of scab that has separated from the unaffected part of the body. The scab is hard to the touch, dry, and not sensitive to pain because of the destruction of the nerves that fed the skin.

1. Extinguish the fire!

• Immediately extinguish fire that is burning the victim’s clothing and hair. Anything that is smoking must be removed from the victim’s vicinity.
• It is important to extinguish any fire to the victim’s clothing immediately and thoroughly.
• The victim must not be allowed to run; this might allow the fire to burst into flames.
• The victim must not be allowed to stand; this might allow his/her hair to catch fire, and/or allow hot smoke into his/her lungs.
• The victim must be laid on the ground and told to roll, or be helped to roll, in order to smother the fire.
• After the fire is out, the victim’s clothing must be removed as the clothing may represent an ongoing source of heat.
• Clothing that is stuck to the victim must not be ripped off with force.
• If the victim’s clothing is saturated with flammable and burning liquids, the victim should be wrapped in a blanket or a sheet, and not sprayed with water.

2. Cool the burn!

The simplest, quickest and most efficient way to cool a burn is to run cold water from the faucet over it. If the burn is large, use the shower. Continue to soak or wash the site until the pain from the burn eases. If the skin has not been damaged, you can ice the burn. However, do not place ice directly on the skin, as this can cause additional damage (cold burns). Place a clean cloth on the skin, and the ice over it. The ice also eases the pain of the burn.

3. Keep the skin intact!

• Do not break blisters that form over a burn. The blister is nature’s most efficient bandage for burns. Breaking the blister creates a serious risk of infection.
• Do not tear off pieces of clothing that have stuck to the skin, so as not to cause further injury.
• Remove any clothing that is not stuck to the skin, to allow for better cooling of the burn.

Note well: All of the above applies to superficial burns over relatively small parts of the body. If the burn is very deep, and the skin sooty, charred, or hard and wax-like (indicating the presence of an eschar), do not wet the burn with water.

Additional directions

Do not cover the burn with oil, margarine, suntan lotion, toothpaste, etc. These not only do not help but can cause more injury.
Burns should be bandaged with clean bandages or with a clean piece of cloth. The victim should be brought to the hospital as soon as possible.

Burns in sensitive locations

Burns to the palms of the hands, the soles of the feet, sexual organs, elbows, knees and underarms, are considered more severe, not because they are life-threatening, but because of the degree of disability they may ultimately cause the victim. Therefore, such burn victims should be evacuated with the greatest urgency, immediately after victims whose lives are at risk.