General Firefighting Flashcards
What is the chief aim of a firefighting agency?
To prevent loss of life, destruction of property and damage to the environment.
What is the simplest definition of firefighting?
The act of extinguishing fires.
What is the role of ACTFR?
Structure fires Bush fires Vehicle fires Road crash rescues Hazmat incidents Chemical, biological or radiological threats Confined space rescue Trench rescue Heights rescue Animal rescue Emergency medical assistance Storm damage assistance Building collapse Responding to automatic fire alarms Fire hazard inspections Fire investigations. Ensuring fire safety compliance in buildings Community education in fire safety and preparedness Coordinating the community fire units Assessing fire engineered building solutions Community safety planning
Describe ACTFR’s earliest history.
Brigade formed in 1913 as Canberra Fire Brigade.
Administered from Melbourne.
Lead by Mr Percy Douglas, who was appointed first chief officer in 1914
Phone number 1 for HQ near Acton Guest House on Molonglo River
Only 2 volunteers, officer, and horse drawn cart.
Describe the fire triangle and fire tetrahedron.
There are 3 elements needed to start a fire: fuel, oxygen, and heat. To sustain the fire, the exothermic redox reaction of combustion provides the heat to keep the chain reaction going.
The three elements are the triangle and the fourth makes it a tetrahedron. When any of the four elements of the tetrahedron is removed from the process, the fire is extinguished or prevented.
Describe ACTFR’s history between WWI and the 1930’s.
Disbanded during WWI, but reformed in 1924 with Mr Percy Douglas reclaiming the role of chief officer.
That year they received their first motorised appliance, a 1914 Hotchkiss, a combined fire engine and ambulance, which remained in service into the 1930s.
