A Safety Guide

1. Extinguishers A Safety Guide Oklahoma Department of Corrections, Training Administration Unit

2. Course Information Data Sources “Workplace Fire Safety”, U.S. Dept. of Labor, Fact Sheet No. OSHA 91-41. Personal interview: Major Otis Greenhoward, Oklahoma City Fire Department, 2002. “Product Safety: Fire Extinguishers”, Underwriters Laboratories Inc., 2002. Course Author: Lynne Presley Course created: November 2002 ORACLE course code: SAFI900000 Training Credit: One hour

3. Course Information, continued Our warmest thanks go to Major Otis J. Greenhoward, Oklahoma City Fire Department, for his assistance in the creation of this course.

4. Course Objectives At the end of this course, students will be able to: • Identify the correct type of fire extinguisher for each fire type • Safely activate and use a fire extinguisher • Understand fire evacuation safety procedures

5. Fire in the U.S. - A Serious Business Every 18 seconds in 2001, a fire department responded to a fire somewhere in the United States 6,196 civilian fire deaths occurred in 2001 (2,451 of these occurred due to the events of 9/11/01) An estimated $44,023,000,000 in property damage occurred in 2001 as a result of fire (this figure includes $33,440,000,000 due to the events of 9/11/01) Karter, Michael. Fire Loss in the United States During 2001. National Fire Protection Association, 2002.

6. Introduction The statistics on the previous slide show the danger of fires. OSHA recognizes this danger, and provides standards requiring employers to provide proper exits, fire fighting equipment, emergency plans, and employee training to prevent fire deaths and injuries in the workplace. Fire fighting equipment includes portable fire extinguishers. Their use can prevent the loss of lives and property.

7. Fire Extinguishers and Types of Fires There are four different classes of fire extinguishers, based on the type of fire each is meant to extinguish. Each extinguisher should be labeled accordingly. Older fire extinguishers may have labels containing shapes and letters: Newer extinguishers have labels showing pictures.

8. Fire Extinguishers and Types of Fires Fire extinguishers may also be formulated to put out more than one type of fire; these are known as multi-class extinguishers. Older fire extinguishers may have labels containing shapes and letters: Newer extinguishers have labels showing pictures.

9. Fire Extinguisher Categories: Class A Class A extinguishers should be used on fires involving ordinary combustibles, such as wood, paper and cloth.

10. Fire Extinguisher Categories: Class B Class B extinguishers should be used on flammable liquid fires, such as grease, gasoline and oil. NOTE: NEVER use water on this type of fire, since this can cause the flames to flare up!

11. Fire Extinguisher Categories: Class C Class C extinguishers should be used on energized electrical fires. NOTE: The letter “C” means the extinguisher agent is non-conductive, so you won’t get shocked when you use it.

12. Fire Extinguisher Categories: Class D Class D extinguishers should be used for fires involving flammable metals, such as magnesium, sodium, potassium, sodium-potassium alloys, zirconium, titanium, lithium, aluminum and uranium. Class D extinguishers are often formulated for specific types of metals. There is no picture label for this class of extinguisher.

13. Fire Extinguisher Categories: Multi-Class Multi-class extinguishers work on all types of fires listed on the label. In this case, an extinguisher with either of the labels on this page will extinguish ordinary combustible,flammable liquids, and electrical equipment fires.

14. Fire Extinguisher Categories: Multi-Class, continued Some multi-class extinguishers are effective on certain types of fires, but not all. In the example above, the extinguisher may be used on ordinary combustibles and electrical equipment fires, but not on flammable liquids fires.

15. Fire Extinguisher Use When you see a fire, there are steps you should take before deciding to use a fire extinguisher: *Activate the manual fire alarm if one is present *Call 911 (or the fire department) to report the fire * If applicable, make sure all inmates and employees are evacuated from the building *If the fire is spreading from its point of origin, or if there’s a chance it may block your exit from the area, evacuate at once. *Don’t open windows unless you need to call for help, since oxygen will cause the fire to expand.

16. Fire Extinguisher Use, continued Be sure the needle on the extinguisher’s gauge is in the middle of the green area, indicating it’s fully charged. (If the needle is to the left of the green area, the extinguisher is undercharged. If it’s to the right, it’s overcharged.)

17. Fire Extinguisher Use, continued Fire extinguishers come in different shapes and capacities, but most can be operated using the “PASS” method.

18. Fire Extinguisher Use: PASS Here’s an easy acronym to remember how to use a fire extinguisher: Pull Aim Squeeze Sweep

19. Pull Fire Extinguisher Use: Pull the extinguisher’s pin (located at the top of the extinguisher). pin

20. Aim Fire Extinguisher Use: Aim the nozzle toward the base of the fire. nozzle

21. Squeeze Fire Extinguisher Use: Squeeze and hold the handle to discharge the extinguisher. Remember to stand at least 7-8 feet away from the flames. (When you first spray the extinguisher, the fire may flare up briefly, which is normal.)

22. Sweep Fire Extinguisher Use: Sweep the extinguisher’s nozzle back and forth at the base of the fire, until the extinguisher is empty.

23. Fire Extinguisher Use: Evacuation Remember – you may have to evacuate the area in a hurry. When using the extinguisher, do not allow the fire to come between you and the exit! Once the fire is out, or you decide it’s too big to extinguish, back away until you’re in a safe area. Never turn your back on a fire, because it may flare up unexpectedly.

24. Learn more about it… To learn more about fire safety, visit the FEMA U.S. Fire Administration web site at: http://www.usfa.fema.gov/dhtml/inside-usfa/nfirs.cfm Conclusion Fire safety is a serious business. We hope the information you’ve viewed in this course will help should you have to use a fire extinguisher at home or on the job. Exit this course