Fire Basics
This is one of the three elements needed for a fire to start, along with heat and fuel.
What is oxygen?
Fires involving ordinary combustibles like wood, paper, or cloth fall into this class.
What is Class A?
This type of nozzle can produce a straight stream or a mist of water for fire suppression.
What is a fog nozzle?
The recommended method for extinguishing Class A fires.
What is water?
The lowest concentration of a combustible gas or vapor in air that can ignite or explode in the presence of an ignition source.
What is the lower explosive limit (LEL)?
This is what we intend to accomplish at a fire scene.
What is strategy?
This tool is commonly used to push or pull objects during firefighting operations.
What is a pike pole?
The transfer of heat through direct contact is called this.
What is conduction?
This stage of a fire is characterized by small flames, low heat, and minimal smoke.
What is the incipient stage?
Removing one side of this geometric fire model will extinguish a fire.
What is the fire tetrahedron?
This type of fire involves flammable liquids like oil and grease.
What is Class B?
This piece of equipment provides breathable air in fire environments but does not regenerate oxygen.
What is an SCBA (Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus)?
The type of extinguisher used for fires involving live electrical equipment.
What is an ABC powder extinguisher?
This document contains detailed information about hazardous materials onboard and must be easily accessible.
What is the SDS (Safety Data Sheet)?
These are the actions taken to achieve the goals set during a fire emergency.
What are tactics?
This type of firefighting hose is typically used for attack lines and is 1.5 inches in diameter.
What is a 1.5-inch hose?
This phenomenon occurs when all combustible materials in a room reach their autoignition temperature simultaneously.
What is flashover?
This is the longest stage of a fire, during which heat drops and combustion materials or oxygen deplete.
What is the decay stage?
This stage of a fire is the easiest to extinguish because all three sides of the fire triangle are present, but the fire has not grown significantly.
What is the ignition stage?
Fires involving live electrical equipment are classified under this category.
What is Class C?
This type of firefighting gear is designed to keep external threats out while keeping internal moisture in.
What is a flash coat?
Fires involving Class K materials are best extinguished with this.
What are wet chemicals?
This is the lowest possible temperature at which a substance, when mixed with air, will flash but not sustain combustion.
What is the flashpoint?
This ventilation method uses existing openings in a building to remove smoke, heat, and gases.
What is natural ventilation?
This nozzle produces a straight stream and is adjustable to produce different water patterns.
What is an adjustable smoothbore nozzle?
This layer of air in a fire is typically cooler and found closer to the ground.
What is the thermal layering lower level?
This occurs when heat energy is transferred through space by electromagnetic waves.
What is radiation?
This phenomenon is air-driven and occurs when a rapid influx of oxygen causes a fire to explode.
What is a backdraft?
Fires involving combustible metals like magnesium and aluminum belong to this class.
What is Class D?
This type of breathing apparatus is for emergency escape only and will melt in hot environments.
What is an EEBD (Emergency Escape Breathing Device)?
This type of foam penetrates and wets solid materials to extinguish Class A fires.
What is Class A foam?
The effect that describes how freely moving fluids in a compartment can disrupt a ship's stability.
What is the free surface effect?
These detectors activate when there is a rapid temperature rise that is abnormal to the area.
What are heat detectors?
This type of fire suppression system uses a high-pressure water mist to extinguish fires.
What is a Hi-FOG system?
The point at which a substance continues to burn for at least five seconds after ignition is called this.
What is the flame/fire point?
This rapid reaction involves oxygen combining with fuel to produce heat, light, and combustion byproducts.
What is combustion?
The slowest rate of oxidation that can take place and cause a fire is called this.
What is pyrolysis?
Fires in commercial cooking equipment fueled by animal fats or vegetable oils are classified as this.
What is Class K?
This valve on an SCBA allows air to bypass the regulator if it malfunctions.
What is the purge (bypass) valve?
This method of applying foam directs it against a solid object to create a foam blanket.
What is the bank-down method?
This type of foam creates a layer on top of liquid fuels to suppress Class B fires.
What is fluorine-free foam?
This type of fixed suppression system requires the authorization of the master or chief engineer to activate.
What is a CO2 full-flooding system?
This component of an SCBA alerts the user when their air supply drops to approximately 25%.
What is the low-air “vibe” alert?
The highest concentration of a gas in air that can still ignite and burn is known as this.
What is the upper explosive limit (UEL)?
This term describes the layering of heat and smoke in a fire, with cooler layers at the bottom and hotter layers above.
What is thermal layering?