Fire - make it safe

Fire, one of the greatest inventions or utilization of natural resources ever!!! With it we can heat ourselves, cook food, keep the dark at bay and gives us an excuse to sit around with friends and loved ones!!! Fire is something most of us take for granted on a daily basis. We turn on the stove or put food in the oven and eat when the food is ready. Heck some of us might just use a microwave or drive through a restaurant to get our cooked food. Most of us really do not know how to make a fire, feed a fire or cook over a fire. We kind of take for granted the clicking noise the stove makes and the flame which pops up.

The internet is filled with videos of how to build a fire from scratch, utilizing the most primitive methods possible. Something you rarely see is how long it really took to learn how to make the fire, how many times the person failed before they mastered the method. Learning these skills is important and something we should all try to learn. They also seem to never show the fire builder clearing an area or prepping an area to safely build the fire.

Now learning to properly build, light and feed a fire is a very important skill to have and every one of us should take the time to learn how to do it. What we are going to discuss for a moment is safety when you are making and using open flames! If we are faced with an emergency or just building a fire to enjoy with our friends and families we need to be safe while we are doing this.

Not taking a moment to properly clear an area, contain the fire and having the ability to quickly put out the fire can take a bad situation and make the situation much worse. Imagine your family huddled in an abandoned building. Your children are cold and you struggle to make a fire to warm them. In your haste you pile rubbish in the corner and light it. Of course now you feel better as you run around to add fuel to the flames, knowing at the very least your children will not be cold in a few minutes. The situation might suck but at least you will be warm. Yes we all can see where this is going! The curtains by the window catch fire or the wall behind your fire catches fire or the fire gets so large the ceiling catches fire and in the end you and your family are back outside in the elements. Of course you will have a fire for while….. At least until the building burns down.

Fires get out of control all the time. Someone leaves a candle unattended, a spark jumps from a fire place or the cook lets the grease catch fire in the kitchen. Any time we are dealing with flames we need to make sure the area around the flame is clear of anything which could catch fire. We need to have a way to put the fire out quickly if the flames start to become uncontrollable. We need to keep in mind the fire has a mind of its own. Ask a fireman, flames are creatures in their own right and have a mind of their own.

Build a fire on the ground, as in dirt not the covered floor of a house. Build a fire on concrete or cement, not on tiles. Build a fire in a container, a metal bin or surrounded by rocks. Maybe you can find cement blocks to surround the fire with? Place a bucket of sand or dirt near the fire. A fire extinguisher is a better idea.

On the weekend or during an emergency safely managing a fire is something we all need to take into account. The simple mistake of not doing this could compound a bad situation or simply ruin a family gathering. Take the time when using flames to look at what you are doing with safety in mind. The house you save could be your own!!!

As Always,

Stay Safe!!!