FIRE FIGHTING AND FIRE SAFETY
Fires do the following
• Fires destroy lives and property;
• Fires has no respect for class or status;
• Fires has no respect for the time of day / night;
• In general – fires destroy and needs to be prevented and combated …
Veldt fire AWARENESS
90% of all unwanted fires are caused by humans and negligence. The following can assist in awareness programs:
• Know where the danger areas are
• Know the danger season
• Understand the local conditions (veldt density, typical weather conditions, etc)
• What is going on around your property …
• Be aware of wind speeds and other weather conditions (SA Weather Services)
• Educate your staff and communities
• Educate your visitors and guests (especially guest farms …)
• Who is living next to you
Veldt fire PREVENTION
Remember that prevention is better than cure …
• Provide educational material for your staff. (Legal requirement) {internet, local library, govern-ment, etc …}
• Don’t allow unsafe tasks to be executed
• Hot work and grinders
• Rubbish fires to be at safe areas and to be extinguished
• Open fires and braai’s to be extinguished – disposal of hot ashes
• Fire breaks to be extinguished and patrolled at least three hours after extinguished
• Electrical connections
• Flammable liquids – storage and handling
• General household around houses and buildings – keep clear of combustible materials and flammable liquids
• Remove dead grass / plants that can cause a fire hazard
• Stacking procedures …
Veldt fire PREPAREDNESS
• Form emergency teams – own staff and neighbours (fire fighting, medical, radio, …)
• Fire fighting equipment like fire extinguishers, fire hose reels, skid units (bakkie sakkies)
• Maintenance and services of these equipment
• Regular checks and drills with staff
• Monthly inspections and logs to be completed
• Planning for actions such as burning of fire breaks
• Fire breaks –
• Moderate weather,
• Notice to neighboring land owners (at least 2 weeks)
• Standby fire fighting teams and equipment
Fire breaks should be –
• Made in such a way that it would stop a reasonable fire
• Not causing erosion (refer back to act)
• Be reasonable free from material that can cause the fire to spread
Veldt fire RESPONSE
• ALL fires start small – immediate and effective response can save lives and property
• Fire teams to deal with fire
• Backup teams to take over and relieve the first crews …
• Emergency response plans
• S.O.A.R
– Size up
– Objectives
– Activities / Actions
– Responces
• Command and control
• Radio network (communications) amongst fire fighters and command
• Communication to local authorities (Fire, SAPS, ambulance, Disaster Management, SANDF, etc)
• One person in overall command with “Incident Command System” in place
Some practical tips …
• Do not allow to many people in the area
• Fire fighting teams should work short shifts (40 min)
• Approach the fire from the sides and try to narrow the front of the fire
• Narrow against natural breaks like roads, rivers, etc
• Place fire fighting teams strategically – even far ends from the fire to combat fires started by wind
• Make fire breaks during the fire – {equipment}