Dealing With Fire During Flint Water Crisis

The residents of Flint know the risk of running out of clean water. They are also well aware of the inefficiency of filthy water to put out fires. However, water crises can occur anywhere. Even if you don’t live in a region where water is scarce, you may still face situations where you wouldn’t be able to access clean water to put out a fire.

Dealing with such a situation would require you to know how to put out fires without water. Here are some such methods that can be helpful:

Using a Portable Fire Extinguisher

Portable extinguishers are the quickest and most effective means to put out fires without water. Extinguishers are effective because they cut off the oxygen supply where they are sprayed. Since oxygen is essential for a fire to stay burning, the fire gets put out immediately upon losing contact with oxygen.

However, while using a fire extinguisher, ensure direct it straight at the fire to ensure its effectiveness. You can get regular fire extinguishers for home and portable fire extinguishers in your vehicle for campsites or emergencies.

Using some Aerosol Suppressors

Aerosol suppressors can be an effective replacement for fire extinguishers. They are especially useful to put out wildfires or fires in inaccessible spaces as the contents from aerosol spray cover a large area when sprayed. They are also much easier to use compared to regular fire extinguishers.

Using thick Blankets

Blankets work similarly to fire extinguishers by cutting off the oxygen supply. Since blankets are made to trap the air and stop its flow from one point to another, they can effectively put out fires. However, using blankets can be dangerous since the blanket may let some fire out which may cause the skin or clothes to burn.

Keep this method only as a last resort or in severe emergencies. Using blankets to put out people and animals on fire is more effective than using them to put out a wild, open fire.

Using Baking Soda

Baking soda is a natural and effective fire extinguisher. It is most effective against small fires at home, such as cooking pans or small electric appliances. Since baking soda is a pantry item, it can be easily accessible in the kitchen to put out fires.

However, baking soda generates a big smoke as it extinguishes fire, so it should be thrown safely from a distance. Placing it in a large bowl and using the bowl to take a shot at the burning fire can be helpful.

Using Dirt

Another effective natural fire extinguisher, dirt, can be used in the following three ways to put out fires:

Throwing Dirt on Fire

This is the simplest and easier method to put out fires without water outdoors. It can be used both for fires in pits and at campsites. Shove some dirt from your surroundings and throw it on the burning fire from a safe distance.

If you don’t have a tool appropriate for shoveling, you can also get scoops of dirt in a mug or plate and throw the dirt through them.

Shoving Dirt Around the Fire

If the burning fire is too big to be put out by throwing dirt at it, you can try creating a dirt wall around the fire. To successfully pull off this method, you can take anything to help you shovel dirt on the ground. You can either dig a hole around the fire or push the dirt on it from all sides.

This will limit the fire in its space. Once you are sure that the fire is not spreading, you can throw some more dirt on it or let it burn completely and die on its own.

Shoving the Dirt Under the Burning Fire

This is the quickest method of putting out a fire using dirt. However, it requires a shoveling tool. If you have a shoveling tool, you can use this method to put out fires effectively and quickly.

Hold the shoveling tool from the corner and use it to shove the dirt under the fire around. Repeating this action enough times will bring up the dirt from the ground underneath the fire onto the surface of the burning materials. You will soon notice the fire getting smaller. Keep shoveling the ground under the fire until the whole fire is out.

While this method is effective, it can be dangerous as it requires you to be close to the fire. Only apply this method is the fire is small. When dealing with bigger fires, use the surrounding dirt to create a pit or throw it onto the fire.

Don’t forget to contact the fire department as soon as the fire breaks out. You should only use the above methods to control damage until the fire department shows up. Always prioritize saving lives over material things in case of fire. Also, contact a professional restoration service afterward for cleanup and restoring fire damage.

Many restoration services, such as the 911 Restoration of Flint, provide emergency fire damage restoration, including smoke and odor cleanup.