FIRE OVERVIEW
• Fire, helpful and destructive to mankind, is more than a necessary evil: controlled, it provides warmth and food, but uncontrolled, it produces death and destruction.
• Because of the power of fire, it
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FIRE OVERVIEW
• Fire, helpful and destructive to mankind, is more than a necessary evil: controlled, it provides warmth and food, but uncontrolled, it produces death and destruction.
• Because of the power of fire, its unintentional origin and behavior are difficult to predict and determine.
FIRE OVERVIEW
• In order to understand the behavior of fire, one must have an understanding of the chemical principles that control its origin and spread and the physical phenomena that result from its behavior.
• Fire itself is a chemical phenomenon, all fuels are (synthetic or organic) chemical compounds and when fuel is ignited, the result is a chemical reaction with predictable physical effects.
A fire will double every 30 Seconds under normal conditions.
In as little as 3 minutes, a small fire can erupt into a “FLASHOVER”.
A small fire can produce enough smoke to fill a building in minutes.
Smoke results in:
Teary eyes
Choking sensation
Impaired judgment due to Carbon Monoxide (CO)
Loss of spatial recognition
Sedation effect - Respiratory failure
Within minutes, air temperature in a burning room can reach 300 degrees Celsius. This temperature is hot enough to melt clothes, skin and scorch your lungs in one breathe.
Temperatures can climb to between 650-760 degrees Celsius.
Most people who die in fires, die from breathing smoke and toxic gases.
Carbon Oxide, Hydrogen Cyanide, Ammonia and hundreds of other irritants attack your eyes, nose, throat and lungs.
They numb your senses and leave you dazed.
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