We had a brief training at the office on fire safety. i have never paid much attention to the fire extinguisher until now…
If you look at the fire extinguisher, you will see some of these alphabets on the chili red body. The alphabets on the fire extinguisher will tell what type of fire it suitable to extinguish.
Extracted from Bomba website
In general, there are five types of fire extinguisher. Fire extinguisher are labelled based on “Symbol” or “Letters of the Alphabet”.
| Fire Classes | Explanation |
| A | Extinguished fire from solid material like wood, paper, cloth and other flammable object. |
| B | Extinguished fire from liquid like oil, paint, varnish, plastic and others. |
| C | Extinguished fire from gasses like butane, acetylene, electrical wiring, fuse box, electrical device and others. |
| D | Extinguished fire from metal like potassium, sodium, calcium and magnesium. |
| E | Extinguished fire from cooking oil that are used commercially. |
The most common (and probably cheapest) type of fire extinguisher is the powder type, these are suitable for A, B and C type of fires. The dry powder expelled from this type of fire extinguisher can be messy and will corrode sensitive electrical components.
CO2 fire extinguisher – suitable for class B and C fires. The fire extinguisher comes with a horn to direct the CO2. Do not touch / hold the horn while the extinguisher is discharging as this will be extremely cold . the discharging gas which is pressurized liquid CO2 is extremely low temperature . CO2 type extinguisher does not leave a residue like the powder type extinguisher but if large quantity of CO2 is present in confined space, it might cause asphyxiation , ventilate the room after the fire is under control.
Apart from the more common powder and CO2 , there are also clean agent fire extinguishers, which similar to CO2, store agent as a liquid that turn into gas when it hits the air. Clean agent extinguishers are suitable for type A, B and C fires.. So, choose the most suitable type of fire extinguisher based on the type of fire expected and the expected effect.
Easy steps to use a Fire Extinguisher : ( extracted from bomba webpage ) Pull the Pin at the top of the extinguisher Aim at the base of the fire Squeeze the lever slowly Sweep from side to side More extracts from Bomba website : Kitchen Cleanliness Avoid from putting pot handles, food wrappers, recipe books and anything can burn nearby to your stove. Make sure your cooking stove always clean. Dirt or built-up grease can catch fire. Avoid from putting curtains, hand towel nearby to your stove. Fighting Kitchen Fires Grease fires : Turn off the burner. Cover the pan with its lid. Let the pan cool. Open the lid slowly. Microwave or Oven Fires : If a microwave or Oven catches fire : Unplug the microware or oven. Bring them to the open area. Keep the door closed. Extracted from http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/HomeAndCommunity/InYourHome/FireSafety/DG_071645 How to cook safely There are several things you can do to prevent fires in the kitchen. Make sure you don’t get distracted when you are cooking, and: take pans off the heat or turn the heat down if you’re called away from the cooker, eg by a phone call take care if you’re wearing loose clothing as it can catch fire easily don’t cook if you have been drinking alcohol or taken prescription drugs - you may get drowsy or lose concentration Cooker and toaster safety You can prevent fires when using a cooker or a toaster by following these simple tips: turn saucepans so the handles don’t stick out over the edge of the hob or over another ring double check that the cooker is off when you have finished cooking make sure tea-towels aren’t hanging over the cooker and don’t put oven gloves on top of a hot cooker keep the oven, hob and grill clean – built-up fat and bits of food can start a fire check that the toaster is clean and well away from curtains and empty the crumb tray regularly Cooking with oil You need to be especially careful when you are deep-fat frying or cooking with oil because hot oil can catch fire easily. Make sure you: don’t fill a chip pan or other deep-fat fryer more than one-third full of oil use a thermostat-controlled deep-fat fryer, which will make sure the fat doesn’t get too hot Dealing with a fire in your kitchen If a pan catches fire in your kitchen: don’t move it because it will be very hot turn off the heat if it’s safe to do so – don’t lean over the pan to reach the controls don’t use a fire extinguisher on a pan of oil because the force of the extinguisher can spread the fire never use water on chip pan fires as this will cause a fireball, use a fire blanket to smother the flames if it safe to do so get out, stay out and call 999 If an electrical appliance catches fire, don’t throw water on it. If it is safe to do so, you may be able to put out the fire immediately by: pulling the appliance’s plug out switching off the power at the fuse box If the fire doesn’t go out, get out of the house, stay out and call 999.Please have read of the attached pdf file – safety tips during fire
In case of the fire, the number to call is 999, it is recommended to have the number of the Bomba station closest to you handy as they might be able to dispatch help faster than going through the 999 number which might require rerouting to the nearest fire station.
In line with our theme for the day, I looked up some phrases/idioms containing the word ‘fire’…
A burnt child dreads the fire; add fuel to the fire; come under fire; fat is in the fire; fire is a good servant but a bad master; get on like a house on fire; great balls of fire! ( for Jerry Lee Lewis fans); have too many irons in the fire; hold somebody’s feet to the fire; If you play with fire, you get burned ; out of the frying pan into the fire; where there’s smoke there’s fire; play with fire ; set the world on fire ; liar, liar, pants on fire….
The origin of Liar, Liar, pants on fire, extracted from Uncyclopedia ( click here)
Liar Liar Pants on Fire! is an expression of unknown meaning but well-established origins. In its most complete version, it is rendered “Liar, liar, pants on fire. Hangin’ on a telephone wire!” or “nose is as long as a telephone wire!” It is most commonly associated with accusations of dishonesty. In contrast, the origins of the phrase are not in question. It is a paraphrased version of the 1810 poem “The Liar” by William Blake, reprinted here in full. Deceiver, dissembler Your trousers are alight From what pole or gallows Shall they dangle in the night? When I asked of your career Why did you have to kick my rear With that stinking lie of thine Proclaiming that you owned a mine? When you asked to borrow my stallion To visit a nearby moored galleon How could I ever know that you Intended to turn him into glue? What red devil of mendacity Grips your soul with such tenacity? Will one you cruelly shower with lies Put a pistol ball between your eyes? What internal serpent Has lent you his forked tongue? From what pit of foul deceit Are all these whoppers sprung? Deceiver, dissembler Your trousers are alight From what pole or gallows Do they dangle in the night?
