ESCONDIDO FIRE DEPT TRAINING MANUAL Section Engine Module Page 1 of 9 Wildland Fire Shelters Revised

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1 Engine Module Page 1 of 9 FIRE SHELTERS The fire shelter is a mandatory item of personal protective equipment for all wildland firefighters and must be carried on the fire line by everyone. No one who is required to carry a fire shelter should go on the fire line without reading, understanding, and practicing the procedures in this section. The fire shelter has been required equipment for wildland firefighters since Since that time, shelters have saved the lives of more than 300 firefighters and have prevented hundreds of serious injuries. A new generation of fire shelter now offers improved protection from both radiant and convective heat. Even so, the shelter will not protect firefighters under all fire situations. The fire shelter should be used as a last resort if planned escape routes or safety zones become inadequate and entrapment is imminent. New tests have shown how important it is for firefighters to deploy fire shelters where flames will not contact the shelters. If flame contacts the fire shelter, the shelter can release gases that ignite and burn inside the shelter. In the event of a burn over, the fire shelter is still one of the firefighter s most valuable pieces of personal protective equipment. The shelter must be deployed where it will not be contacted by flame if it is to provide the most benefit. Fire shelters will be issued and worn by all line personnel. They will be inspected regularly, and "training" shelters will be deployed annually at required refresher safety training. Supervisors and firefighters must never rely on fire shelters instead of using welldefined and pre-located escape routes and safety zones. The shelter is to be viewed as a last resort, and will not be used as a tactical tool. You should already be selecting your firefighting tactics to ensure firefighter safety. You should avoid all potential entrapment situations. The fire shelter was never intended to allow firefighters to make risky decisions. However, this is an excellent time for all firefighters to consider their own commitment to safety. Pay attention to the 10 and 18 and continually reevaluate the effectiveness of your Lookouts, Communications, Escape routes, and Safety zones (LCES).

2 Engine Module Page 2 of 9 FIRE SHELTER KEY POINTS Carrying a fire shelter should never be considered an alternative to safe firefighting. If you are considering or are asked to take on a risky assignment because you have a fire shelter, it is your obligation to insist that the plans be changed. Though the new generation fire shelter offers improved protection, it is still a last resort and cannot guarantee your survival. If something goes wrong and I have to use my shelter, where should I deploy it? Deploy as far from fuels as possible. Do not deploy next to grass, small trees, brush piles of slash, or firefighting equipment. Firefighters who have deployed their fire shelters in sites that were otherwise adequate have been burned because they deployed too close to such fuels. Ground fuels such as grass or tree litter can ignite rapidly in front of intense flames. Deployment areas should be as free of fuels as possible. Suggested areas for deployment include paved, gravel, or dirt roads, burned areas that will not re-burn, rockslides, or areas cleared by dozers. A bench or a roadbed on the side of a hill can be a good deployment site. Level areas like these can keep you below the path of flames and convective heat. DO NOT deploy in chimneys or saddles or in the bottom of a draw. Flames and convective heat are funneled into these areas. If you are on a road, DO NOT deploy where the road passes through a chimney, draw, or saddle. Move out of these areas before deploying. Large objects that will not burn, such as a large rock or pile of dirt, can act as barriers to heat if they are between you and the approaching flames. Large objects that will not burn, such as a large rock or pile of dirt, can act as barriers to heat if they are between you and approaching flames. Open ridge tops can be effective deployment sites because convective heat and flames will generally continue rising above them. Fire intensity often drops when a fire reaches a ridge. Recommendations for staying away from fuels still apply

3 Engine Module Page 3 of 9 What If the Burn Over Happens So Fast That I Cannot Get to A Cleared Area? If you follow safe firefighting tactics, you should not end up in a situation where you have to deploy your shelter. If you must deploy and there is time, clear away any fuels to mineral soil. Otherwise, you will have to make the best of your situation. Remember, deploy as far as you can from fuel concentrations, trees, and brush. Do not deploy in tall grass. Look for the sparsest fuels you can find. If you are considering or are asked to take on a risky assignment because you have a fire shelter, it is your obligation to insist that the plans be changed. Though the new generation fire shelter offers improved protection, it is still a last resort and cannot guarantee your survival. The lee side of a ridgetop can be an effective deployment site because the flames and hot gases tend to rise above the ridge. Fire intensity usually drops when fire reaches a ridge. But be alert for the possibility that firebrands might ignite fires below you on the lee side of the ridge. If I am in a shelter and flames contact it, what should I do? DO NOT PANIC. Rely on your training. Keep your face in the dirt. You must protect your lungs and airway from the hot gases. If you find that you must move to lessen the impact of flames or intense heat on your shelter, keep your nose and mouth close to the ground. Air on the ground is much cooler than air even inches above the ground. Scoot along the ground, but DO NOT RISE UP OFF THE GROUND. One breath of hot air can kill you. Even if fire is inside the shelter, the shelter provides your best chance of survival. You may be burned. Be prepared to steel yourself against the pain. Conditions outside the shelter will be much worse than they are inside. Firefighters who have panicked and left the shelter have died.

4 Engine Module Page 4 of 9 STANDARD DEPLOYMENT PROCEDURES These steps will provide you with the necessary steps and information on how to deploy your shelter. Order of Operations - Deployment Procedures 1. Use the pull strap to remove the shelter from its case. 2. Scrape away ground fuels if time permits. Clear an area 4 by 8 feet (larger if you have time) down to mineral soil. A clean area minimizes flame contact with the shelter and reduces the likelihood the shelter will produce gases that could ignite inside it. Never deploy your shelter immediately downwind or uphill from a large concentration of fuel. 3. Pull either red ring to remove the plastic bag.

5 Engine Module Page 5 of 9 4. Grasp the shake handles that extend from the folded shelter. The handles are marked, RIGHT HAND in red and LEFT HAND in black (figure 8). When you have the shake handles in the proper hands, the shelter will unfold with the opening toward your body. Grasping the wrong handles will not prevent you from entering the shelter, but it may slow your deployment by 1 to 2 seconds. Grasping the correct shake handles will speed your deployment. 5. While holding the shake handles, shake out your shelter.

6 Engine Module Page 6 of 9 6. Many Firefighters have found that the best way of entering the new shelter is to step in, sit down, and roll onto your stomach. 7. Lie face down so your feet are toward the oncoming flames. The hottest part of the shelter will be the side closest to the advancing fire. Keep your head and airway away from these high temperatures.

7 Engine Module Page 7 of 9 8. The hold down straps on the new shelter are sewn into the floor panels. As soon as you are under your shelter, slip your arms through the straps up to your elbows. Hold the shelter down with your feet, legs, elbows, and hands. WHEN TO LEAVE THE SHELTER There is no fixed time to stay under your shelter. Don t move until the flame front has passed. A drop in noise, wind, and heat, and a change in the color of light passing through the shelter are tip-offs that it s safe to leave the shelter. Stay put until temperatures have cooled significantly or a supervisor tells you. When you leave your shelter, make sure that your supervisor knows the deployment occurred. Leave your shelter and other equipment in place if you can do so safely. A great deal can be learned from reviewing the circumstances of entrapments and the performance of protective equipment. Leaving a shelter too soon can expose your lungs to superheated air or dense smoke. Typical entrapments have lasted from 10 to longer than 90 minutes. Entrapments don t last as long in light, flashy fuels as they do in dense, heavy fuels. Firefighters have died when they came out of their shelters too soon. Stay inside a little longer if you have any doubt about leaving the shelter. SHELTER DEPLOYMENT REVIEW If you are part of a crew, your crew supervisor decides where and when to deploy. If you're not in a crew or have become separated from it, you must rely on your own judgment. Remember: Follow escape route procedures. Use your fire shelter as a last resort. Give yourself enough deployment time. Don't panic. Have confidence in the shelter and in yourself.

8 Engine Module Page 8 of 9 Shelter deployment sites have sometimes been termed, improperly, "safety zones." Safety zones should be planned as locations where no shelter will be needed. This does not imply that a shelter should not be deployed if needed, only that if there is a deployment, the safety zone location was not truly a safety zone. Keep in mind that you must protect your airways and lungs from the fire's hot gases. Turbulence can lift a shelters edge, letting in hot gases. Flame fronts can generate winds of 50 mph or more, so you must hold the shelter down firmly. Create a seal with the ground. Refer to agency specific job breakdowns for more information. Gloves are critical; without them you may burn your hands and be unable to hold down the shelter. Wear your hardhat or the shelter could burn your head. Take your canteens and radio with you into the shelter. The water will help to prevent dehydration. Never plan to share a shelter unless someone is without one. The extra space helps insulate you from the heat and minimizes body contact with hot shelter material. Sharing greatly increases your risk of injury. Inspecting Your Fire Shelter First inspect the vinyl plastic bag. Is it free of punctures and dents? Is the quickopening strip unbroken and the tab intact? If you find a hole in the vinyl bag, or if the quick-opening strip is broken but the shelter is still serviceable, the bag can be resealed. Simply remove any particles that could cause abrasion, and then reseal with a durable tape. Abrasion is the most common shelter damage, and it can be spotted through the bag -- the fiberglass cloth has usually rubbed the aluminum foil. This occurs on the outer surface or the outside edges. Remove the shelter from service if you see extensive edge abrasion. If aluminum particles have turned the clear vinyl bag gray or black, serious abrasion has occurred. Remove the shelter from service. Debris in the bottom of the bag indicates extreme abrasion. Remove the shelter from service. Look for tears along folded edges. Tears are most likely to occur at the top end where all the sharp edges come together above the liner -- damage is less common along the wider folds. Remove shelters from service when tears exceed one inch. If you are unsure about the condition of a shelter, slit open the vinyl bag along the end above the red pull-ring. Carefully examine the shelter by lifting the first several folds. Do not fully open the shelter. A shelter deployed for inspection or demonstration should not be used on the fire line. Check edges and outer surfaces for abrasion. These areas often wear as the shelter is carried. If serious abrasion exists, remove the shelter from service. If the shelter is undamaged, reseal the bag with durable tape.

9 Engine Module Page 9 of 9 Many cracks and pinholes occur in the shelter fabric during manufacture, particularly in the sewing and folding steps. Dime-size or smaller holes don't impair the shelter's ability to reflect away radiant heat. If holes are larger than dime-size, the shelter should be removed from service. The following is an important notice of procedures when deploying a fire shelter and using an 800 MHz Radio. This concern only addresses the 800 MHz Radio and is not applicable to VHF radios. The 800 MHz radio signal from your portable radio will not penetrate the material of the fire shelter. The material of the shelter will not allow the radio to transmit outside of the shelter or receive messages from an RCS site while inside the shelter. In effect, the material of the shelter blocks all 800 MHz radio signals to RCS sites. The radio waves will bounce around inside the shelter. When you enter the shelter your 800 MHz will display an Out of Range message. The conventional (CNV) Car-to-Car channels do work for a limited distance and are line of sight only. Further more, bouncing radio waves on every Zone of your radio can cause harm (burn) to the retina of your eyes by keeping the signal inside the shelter. Additionally, this bounce effect of the radio waves can damage the transmitter function of the radio rendering it inoperable. You are directed to take the following actions when fire shelter deployment is imminent: Notify your immediate supervisor of the situation, your position, and plan. Notify your supervisor when you have reached your deployment site. Report your deployment position to your immediate supervisor, number of personnel deploying, prepare the ground, and order deployment. Ensure all personnel are sheltered and make a final check of the area for employees in distress or in need of assistance. Supervisors should give strong consideration to having their VHF portable radio with them on all vegetation fires. Remember: LCES compliance can prevent a deployment situation.