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Safety Near the Fire Lines
by Paul Duer
Every summer is fire season in El Dorado County. Some years, hardly a day goes by without a wildland fire somewhere. While it's rare for SAR people to be called into a fire zone, it has happened before. A fire safety class is highly recommended, but until then, here are some key points:
Clothing - Naturally, SAR people can't be expected to buy everything listed below, but here's what professionals use:
- Helmet: Like a construction hardhat
- Goggles: There will be lots of wind and ashes
- Shroud: To protect your neck
- Jacket: Professionals use Nomex, with a hood or a high collar
- Pants: Nomex
- Boots: High all-leather laceups are best
- Gloves: Double-insulated leather, long gauntlet, velcro closure
(Keep away from polyesters and other synthetic fabrics. If they catch fire, they melt and stick to your skin. - PD)
Vehicle Safety
- Watch out for automobiles - people are going to be in a hurry. Many are wearing helmets and gear, so their hearing and vision are not as acute.
- Big vehicles (like fire trucks and tankers) are likely to back up in a hurry and the driver probably can't see well. Treat them like helicopters: approach them from the front, get the driver's attention, then wait for a wave-in.
- Be especially wary of bulldozers, front loaders and the like: the blade blocks the drivers' front view. Approach them at a 45 degree angle, not from dead ahead. Again: get the driver's attention before you approach. Don't work below dozers, because their debris rolls downhill.
In the Field
- Always have an escape route planned ahead of time. Communicate it clearly to your team. Update your plans as conditions change.
- When parking your vehicle, back it in and face it down your escape route, because escapes are usually made in smoke and confusion.
- Always keep a fire lookout. Know where the fire is and and what it's doing at all times.
- A change in wind direction or speed is a danger signal.
- Keep communications open with command post and with other teams. Know where you are and where they are.
If Your Escape Route is Cut Off
- The safest area in the vicinity of a fire is in an area that has already been burned over (the "black").
- A vehicle is a good refuge. Stay low. Don't lock the doors. Hang blankets in the windows to reduce radiant heat.
- You can also take refuge in a house. Close the drapes, turn off the air conditioning and fans, and close all doors. The house will catch fire, but the fire will burn past before the house threatens you.
- If you use a personal fire shelter tent (a "shake and bake"), you'll usually be in a real hurry. Find a fuel-free area, or at least clear fuel from the ground around you to make a 4x8 foot space. Face your feet toward the fire. Wear leather gloves. The team leader goes in last.
Air Tankers - Borate is out of style; it poisons the ground. Now they use Phoschek, a combination fire retardant and fertilizer. It's pink. It's also slick and slippery, so it's dangerous on rocks. It eats the paint on cars, so wash it off right away.
The drop can be made in several ways:
- One is a trail drop, which is multiple drops from a single plane, usually in a straight line.
- Another is a salvo drop: all at once, boom! This can knock you off your feet.
The plane will make a recon run; this is your warning. Lie face down, facing the approaching plane.
Note that the turbulence from low-level drops upsets wind patterns and changes the behavior of the fire.
Helicopter Water Drops - The water drops may be announced with a siren or other noisemaker. The downwash from the rotor changes the behavior of the fire, so be aware.
Inmate Hand Crews - Orange uniforms are used for CDF convicts on hand crews. (Hmmm - PD) Not all inmates are eligible, e.g., they are not eligible if they've been imprisoned for arson, first degreee murder, or sex charges. There are very few escape attempts. It's recommended that you avoid casual contact with the crew, and speak only to the CDC supervisors. The supervisors wear yellow suits and red helmets.
Standard Firefighting Orders - The following rules are copied from the CDF handout on wildfire safety and survival for firefighters.
- Keep informed on fire WEATHER conditions and forecasts.
- Know what your FIRE is doing at all times. Observe personally; use scouts.
- Base all actions on current and expected FIRE BEHAVIOR.
- Have ESCAPE ROUTES for everyone and make them known.
- Post a LOOKOUT when there is possible danger.
- Be ALERT, keep CALM, THINK clearly, and ACT decisively.
- Maintain prompt COMMUNICATION with your crew, your boss and adjoining forces.
- Give clear INSTRUCTIONS and be sure they are understood.
- Maintain CONTROL of your personnel at all times.
- Fight fire agressively but provide for SAFETY first.
Situations That Shout "Watch Out!" - These 13 items are also on the CDF handout. A few are only for fire fighters, but most are relevant to SAR teams working near a fire line.
- You are building a fireline downhill towards a fire.
- You are fighting a fire on a hillside where rolling material can ignite fuel below you.
- You notice the wind beginning to blow, increase or change direction.
- You notice the weather getting hotter and drier.
- You are in heavy cover with unburned fuel between you and the fire.
- You are away from a burned area where terrain and/or cover makes travel difficult.
- You are in country you have not seen by day.
- You are in an area where you are unfamiliar with local factors influencing fire behavior.
- You are attempting a frontal assault on a fire with tankers.
- You are getting frequent spot fires over your line.
- You cannot see the main fire and you are not in communication with anyone who can.
- You have been given an assignment or instructions unclear to you.
- You feel like taking a nap near the fireline.
Read about the Cleveland Fire in El Dorado County
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