In case one faces fire one should not rush with a bucketful water to douse it. This is because water contains oxygen, something that would fan the fire further by acting as a catalyst. One had better sprinkle water around the fire. A wet surface would not allow the fire to spread. This is one of the views that came up for live demonstrations done by the experts during the fire safety drill held in the convocation hall of Forest Research Institute (FRI) in Dehradun on Tuesday. The drill was jointly organised by FRI, CISF officer and a team working under ONGC.
Fire inspector NP Singh briefed them about the fire. He dwelt on the things that trigger fire as well as on the right ways to control the fire. He also said that in case of fire caused by an exploding lPG cylinder one should use wet blankets or carpets. People should desist from using water to douse such fire. However, the best thing would be to use fire extinguisher or call the fire department. He warned people against rushing out in case lPG cylinder spawns the fire. They had better wait for a few minutes as if the gas is burnt out things would automatically die down.
Besides, he classified fire and dealt at length with the types of extinguishers used to douse fire. He also briefed about the different type of extinguishers and the materials used to douse fire. A live demonstration was also given of different extinguishers working differently to the employees / staffers of FRI.
FRI director Savita also briefed about the fire while citing as an instance a case of fire that had recently occurred in theBamboosetum of FRI and explained how it was controlled.
She also apprised the officers and staffers of the safety of the houses as far as fire accidents are concerned and the do’s and don’ts of the fire.