1
Q
Name the signs and symptoms of a flashover.
A
- Well ventilated free burning fire
- High heat conditions
- Ghost flames overhead
- Sudden lowering in smoke layer
- Rapid rising heat temperatures possibly causing windows to fail.
- Low level materials starting to pyrolyse
- Change in fire conditions with fast moving smoke seen from the exterior to the exit at high velocity, as if under pressure and a steady darkening of smoke colour.
2
Q
What are the BA team options within a compartment?
A
- Stay - protect position using gas cooling and control conditions before moving forward.
- Advance - Attack the fire gasses and/or using correct branch techniques to make progress.
- Withdraw - if conditions deteriorate withdraw protecting themselves with gas cooling to a safer position to re assess actions.
3
Q
Effects when dealing with compartment fires?
A
- Working in hot conditions whilst wearing PPE/BA restricts body ability to regulate body temperature.
- Manual handling tasks increase body temp and fluid loss.
- The ability of BA wearers to make critical decisions and sound judgement is compromised by heat related conditions.
4
Q
What are the effects of raised body temperature?
A
- Anxiety
- Work rate increases so performance drops
- Increased sweat production to cool the body leading to dehydration
- If the blood cannot be cooled by the body and brain temperatures rise to potentially critical and fatal levels.
5
Q
You have been deployed as a BA team to locate and extinguish a fire inside a 2 storey house. As you progress you enter a new compartment and have noticed a change in the environment so you inform your partner that there is potential for a flashover.
1. What would have led you to make this statement
2. What actions would you take and why would you take these actions?
3. What else would you need to consider.
A
- Signs and symptoms of flashover elaborate
- Stay-Withdraw-Advance. Elaborate why.
- Consider the effects of dealing with compartment fires such as raised heat and what this does to the body.
