HOW TO OPERATE YOUR FIRE EXTINGUISHER IN A FIRE EMERGENCY

HOW TO OPERATE YOUR FIRE EXTINGUISHER IN A FIRE EMERGENCY

DANGER!

Make sure your fire extinguisher can be safely and effectively used on the small fire you want to fight. Always use extreme caution when fighting any fire. Fight a fire only where there is a clear escape path to allow you to get out safely if the fire gets worse.


WARNING!

Avoid breathing smoke and heated fumes; stay low if necessary. Burning materials will release toxic fumes. Inhaling these fumes may cause injury or death.


CAUTION!

Always stand back far enough away from the fire - near an exit - and make sure nothing is between you and your escape route. If you get too close to a fire, you risk getting burned or hit by splattering material like grease. If the fire is too hot or too Smokey for you to get within six feet (2 meters), do not try to fight the fire yourself. Evacuate immediately and call the fire department.

For fires on a kitchen stove, turn burners off immediately, if possible. If you can’t reach the oven or burner controls safely, extinguish the fire first, then turn them off.

Fight the fire from an upwind direction, with your back to any strong air current. Trying To find a fire with current flowing toward you can result in serious injury.


TO FIGHT THE FIRE:

  1. Remove the extinguisher from the mounting bracket.
  2. Hold the unit firmly with the nozzle facing away from you. Pull out the pin to break the “Safety Seal”. You won’t be able to squeeze the lever until the safety seal is removed.
  3. Stand back 6 feet (2 meters) from the fire and make sure the fire is not between you and your exit.
  4. Hold the extinguisher upright and aim the nozzle at the base of the fire.
  5. Squeeze and hold the lever to discharge the powder.
  6. Sweep the spray at the base of the burning material, using quick side-to-side motions. (If the spray scatters the fire, move back.)
  7. Move slowly towards the fire as the extinguisher spray pushes the fire back. Maintain a 6-foot (about 2 meters) between you and the front of the fire at all times.
  8. Completely discharge the contents of the extinguisher and make sure the fire is completely out. Flashbacks are common with fires.
  9. For kitchen fires on a kitchen stove, turn off the stove immediately if possible, otherwise, as soon as it is safe.
  10. If you suspect a fire had an electrical origin, shut off the electrical power, if possible, without eliminating your escape route. Do not touch electrical wires or appliances.
  11. After you have completely discharged your extinguisher, leave the building and close all the doors behind you.
AFTER THE FIRE IS EXTINGUISHED

Do not turn the electrical power back on or plug in any appliances until the area has been cleaned up completely. It is very important to remove the powder from electrical equipment after a fire. If the powder gets wet, it can conduct electricity. (Using a dry chemical extinguisher on wet electrical equipment may be hazardous for this reason.) This may worsen an electrical leakage problem, impair the equipment’s insulation, or create an electrical shock hazard. If the fire was on a kitchen stove:
  • Make sure the oven and all burners are turned off.
  • Clean up the powder completely before using the stove or oven. See “How to Clean After Using a Fire Extinguisher.”
  • Ventilate the area thoroughly. If you think the fire had an electrical origin:
    • Shut off the electrical power, if possible - do not touch any electrical wires or appliances. Leave the building and close all doors behind you. Call the Fire Department and have them inspect the premises. As soon as they say it’s safe to return, ventilate the area thoroughly. Have a licensed electrician inspect your electrical system.
    • Do not turn the power back on or plug in any electrical equipment until the inspection has been completed.

(C) 2021 Adapted from the First Alert(R) Fire Extinguisher Use Instructions


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Gecko's Tale

  A Gecko's Tale     If a gecko could talk, it might tell you an amazing tale. What's the story? Why, it's about a tail—a gecko's tail.     A gecko is a kind of lizard. Geckos live in war places such as rain forests, deserts, grasslands, and marshes. Many people also keep them as pets.     Geckos come in all sizes. Some kinds are only the length of your fingernail, and others are longer than your foot.     Geckos hunt for food at night. They move quickly and silently, so they can catch crickets and roaches. Sometimes they eat small birds and mice.     A gecko has a short, thick tail. Its tail helps it survive. What happens when another animal catches a gecko?     The gecko lets go of its tail and escapes! Later, it grows a new one. Now that's an amazing, but true, tale!
Read more

Drumbeats and Bullets from The Boys’ War by Jim Murphy

  Drumbeats and Bullets from The Boys’ War by Jim Murphy The groggy soldier woke up to a persistent, brain-rattling drumming noise. Thrump. Thrump. Thrump. He rolled over in an attempt to ignore the sound and pulled his blanket up over his head. The drumming went on and intensified as drummers all over camp signaled the call to muster.[1] There was no escaping it, and eventually—and usually with a grumble—the soldier got up to start another day. Soldiers probably came to hate the sound of the drums, especially when they heard them on a drizzly, cold morning. Yet drummer boys who served during the Civil War provided valuable service to the armies of both sides, although some didn’t realize it at first. “I wanted to fight the Rebs,”[2] a twelve-year-old boy wrote, “but I was very small and they would not give me a musket. The next day I went back and the man behind the desk said I looked as if I could hold a drum and if I wanted I could join that way. I did, but I was not happy to ...
Read more

Ants

  Ants     What do you know about ants? Did you say that ants are small? You are right. Are there different kinds of ants? Yes. You might know about red and black ants. There are thousands of other types of ants all over the world.     Ants have large heads and six legs. Ants are very strong. Ants can carry things that are much heavier than they are. An ant can carry a leaf, a crumb of food, a small piece of wood, or another ant. Together, many ants can lift a dead insect that is much larger than they are. Later, they can eat it.     Ants live in groups called colonies. Like bees, the leader of the colony is the queen ant. Ants can live in lots of different places. They can live under the ground, in what is called an ant hill. They can live in tree stumps, in cracks in the sidewalk, under large stones, or in a garden. Proofread 7/24/26
Read more