Fire Fighting Equipment 101: Identifying Other Fire Fighting Tools And Equipment

While extinguishers are considered to be the star of firefighting equipment, there are actually other tools which are also equally valuable in terms of fire fighting and protection is concerned.

What exactly are they? You can be more familiar with them by browsing over the short list provided below.

1.Health and safety signs
Now these are something that you are bound to see every day. But because they tend to be common, a lot of people also ignore them. Only a few stop by to really look into them and check out their meaning.

However, did you know that according to UK laws, a business establishment or office is required to post health and warning signs in locations or parts of the building where there is a risk for danger? Not only that, did you also manage to notice that these safety signs have 4 classifications based on the content?

If your answer is no, then be aware that the 4 classifications include:

Red Fire Safety Signs signs which direct people where fire fighting equipment are located (i.e., fire extinguishers, hoses and axes)
Red Prohibition Signs as implied they are the signs which stop you from doing a certain activity in a restricted area.
Green Safe Condition Signs these indicate the location of first aid kits and fire exits in the building
Yellow Triangular Caution Signs signifies that there is high risk of danger or accident in a specific part of a building. Some examples of these signs include the Caution: Wet Floor or Danger: High Voltage signs.

2.Devices that can be used for forcible entry during rescue.
These include axes, hammers and even electrical saws. Believe it or not, these manly tools can be pretty convenient when extracting or rescuing people that are trapped inside rooms or small areas.

3.Extra Long Hoses
These do not have to an actual fire hose. In some cases, a long garden hose with a pressurized nozzle can do the trick for you. However note that hoses in general can only be used as a fire fighting equipment if you are dealing with a class A blaze. An attempt to use water to extinguish a class E or F flames can only make it worse or spread more quickly.

4.Fire buckets
These may look like regular buckets mounted on the wall. But you should not be fooled as these have been used for the longest time. To help extinguish flames, they are filled with smothering substances purchased from the market or materials that are easily available like sand and hard varieties of beans.

5.And for wardens who fight flames professionally, there are also protective clothing and gears that will help do their job quickly and easily. Some of these gears include:
Thick work boots that will enable them to walk over hot ashes
Firemans hat to protect their head from falling debris
Megaphones that enable them to communicate with people amidst the chaos
Torches to help them see through the smoke
Ladders that will help them to access multi level buildings when necessary.

That said, perhaps now you realize that an extinguisher is not all there is as far as firefighting is concerned. In fact, some of them are actual tools that you have available right at your backyard or garage. All you have to do is to recognize their potential to discover them.