Fire Extinguishers
Save Lives
See It – Grab It – Use It
HONOLULU, HI – Fire fighters on the Island of Honolulu were recently called to the scene of a fire at a local restaurant. However, when they arrived on the scene they found that the fire had already been extinguished by a group of Good Samaritans. The group had noticed the fire as they were passing by, so they quickly entered the building, retrieved a portable fire extinguisher and put out the flames. Fire investigators had not determined the cause of the fire, but said it was of suspicious origin. The Good Samaritans prevented over $600,000 of damage from occurring.
Hawaii Tribune Herald (Honolulu, HI)
TEMPLE, TX – Employees of a Texas grocery store were able to use a portable fire extinguisher to put out a fire that had started in the loading dock. Temple fire fighters arrived at the loading dock area around 3:40 a.m. to find that the fire had already been extinguished by the store employees. Their fire investigation determined that the fire was started unintentionally from the heat of a trailer’s clearance light against the door seal. Temple Fire and Rescue said the damage was confined to the door seal and that no one was injured by the fire.
News Channel 25 KXXV (Temple, TX)
PORTLAND, OR – A family of five was in their home when their newly purchased hover board burst into flames on the house’s staircase. The family’s sons were upstairs in their bedrooms, while the two parents were down stairs. The father quickly grabbed a portable fire extinguisher to put out the flames coming from the hover board. Meanwhile, the sons were following the family’s emergency escape plan, which allowed the boys to safely climb down the side of the house using an emergency ladder.
BURTON, SC – Over three consecutive days, Burton Fire officials were dispatched to three separate fires that were ultimately extinguished by bystanders before the fire fighters arrived. The first fire started in a school bus wheel well and was doused using the fire extinguisher that was on board. The bus was not carrying any passengers at the time of the incident. The second fire occurred in a J.C. Penney parking lot when a pickup truck’s engine caught on fire. The driver immediately stopped and used the portable fire extinguisher he had to put out the flames. The final fire was caused by a malfunctioning window air conditioner unit in a home living room. The fire then spread to a nearby couch, but the home’s resident cut power to the unit and used a fire extinguisher. Burton Fire officials are using the incidents to highlight the importance of every home and vehicle having a fire extinguisher.
ELKIN, NC – Three Walmart employees and a customer were honored by the store for their quick thinking that helped minimize an emergency situation and save property and lives. Back on July 4th, around 10:30 pm, a customer alerted the store employees to a fire that had started on one of the merchandise shelves. Three of the store’s employees and a customer ran to get fire extinguishers, which they then used to put out the flames. All three employees had received computer-based extinguisher training, which they credit to helping their effectiveness in the situation. While fire damage to the store was limited, it did have to temporarily close down for the smoke damage to be removed.
JEROME, ID – The Jerome City Fire Department received an emergency call from a resident claiming that there was an explosion next to her house at the Jerome Business Center. When the Fire Department arrived at the Center, they found that the structural fire caused from the explosion had already been put out with a fire extinguisher by two men working in the building. After the fire crew investigated the scene, they learned that the explosion and fire were caused by the tenants of the building who were grinding metal which created a spark that set some fuel vapors on fire. There were no injuries as a result of the explosion or fire.
EVERETT, WA – The Everett Director of Emergency Management and the town Fire Marshal recognized a local woman who helped save her neighbor’s house from a fire. Early one morning, the woman woke to shouting coming from her neighbor’s house. When she looked out the window, she saw that there was a fire on the neighbor’s back porch. She quickly grabbed a portable fire extinguisher from her kitchen, and ran to her neighbor’s house to extinguish the fire. The neighbor had already called 911, but the woman was able to prevent the fire from spreading until the authorities arrived.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ – As a FedEx driver completed his delivery route, he witnessed a car crash into a large rock and flip over. The FedEx driver then immediately pulled over and jumped into action. He ran to the flipped car and carefully helped remove the driver from the vehicle. He then noticed the vehicle had caught on fire so he returned to his truck, grabbed a portable fire extinguisher, and used it to put out the flames. While the police department arrived on the scene less than a minute after the crash, the FedEx driver had already saved the motorist and extinguished the fire.
TAP into Milltown/Spotswood (South Brunswick, NJ)
SIOUX FALLS, SD – While construction crews were working at a Sioux Falls technical high school, they noticed a fire had ignited on the school’s roof. After the crew reported the fire to authorities, they used a portable fire extinguisher to put out the flames. The Sioux Falls Fire Rescue team arrived to find the fire fully extinguished and assisted the school in cleanup efforts. The cause of the fire is unknown, but there were no injuries as a result.
Argus Leader (Sioux Falls, SD)
GATES, NY – A 37-year-old man was riding a bicycle with a modified gas-propelled engine when he was hit by a vehicle turning left. The man then crashed and the bicycle’s gas engine caught on fire. A passerby who witnessed the crash used a portable extinguisher to put out the fire. The bicyclist sustained head injuries as a result of the crash, but the fire was extinguished before anyone was hurt by it.
Latest Stories
Employees use fire extinguisher against mechanical fire
Lincoln, NE – Employees at a manufacturing plant in Lincoln, NE utilized a portable fire extinguisher to stop the spread of a duct fire. After a mechanical failure in the plant’s exhaust system sparked the fire, employees used a nearby fire extinguisher to knock out the flames before firefighters arrived on scene. Fire officials praised […]
Use of fire extinguisher prevents porch fire from spreading
Elk River, MN – An employee of a Minnesota retirement community used a portable fire extinguisher to put out a fire caused by a discarded cigarette, preventing a potentially devastating porch fire. When a poorly discarded cigarette ignited a porch planter, flames and smoke began to enter the apartment building. Hearing the smoke detector, the […]
Homeowners extinguish fire started by family pet
Almira Township, MI – Homeowners in Almira Township, MI, used a portable fire extinguisher to put out a kitchen fire started by the family pet. According to fire officials, the family cat likely turned on the oven’s self-cleaning function which ignited grease in a pan left overnight. The home’s smoke alarm sounded, waking up the […]
Officer extinguishes engine fire, saves driver
Traverse, City MI – In Traverse City, Michigan, a conservation officer is being recognized for rescuing a driver involved in a two-vehicle crash. While he was assisting the rescue effort, the engine of one of the vehicles caught fire. As the flames began to spread, he quickly retrieved the portable fire extinguisher from his patrol […]
Quick-thinking employees extinguish fire
Somerset, KY – At a Dairy Queen in Somerset, Kentucky, employees quickly extinguished a kitchen fire before firefighters arrived. Firefighters dispatched to the scene were relieved to find that employees had already put out the flames using a portable fire extinguisher. The firefighters noted that the employees had completely extinguished the fire using proper fire […]
Bus driver saves police officer after crash
Pine Bluff, AR – In Pine Bluff, Arkansas, a school bus driver saved a police officer’s life after the officer’s vehicle slammed into his bus and caught fire. As flames began to spread across the vehicle, the bus driver was unable to get the driver out of the vehicle. He used a portable fire extinguisher from […]
Oven fire quickly extinguished
Philomath, OR – A woman in Philomath, OR, averted disaster when oil in her oven ignited during a self-cleaning cycle. As the oven caught fire, she quickly grabbed a portable fire extinguisher from outside her apartment door and successfully extinguished the flames before firefighters arrived. Thanks to her swift actions, the damage was limited to […]
Heroes save driver after car catches fire
Dundee, NE – Bystanders in Dundee, NE, are being praised for their quick actions in saving a driver whose vehicle had caught fire. As flames rapidly engulfed the car, two bystanders grabbed portable fire extinguishers and used them to slow the blaze long enough for others to pry open the car door and rescue the […]
Research
Portable Fire Extinguishers Dramatically Reduce the Carbon Footprint of Building Fires
Portable Fire Extinguishers are Safe & Effective Tools for Building Occupants
Videos
About FireExtinguishersSaveLives.org
Why Fire Extinguishers are Important
How to Use a Portable Fire Extinguisher
Fire Safety Map
Are You Safe? Does your building require fire extinguishers throughout?
Every state has a State Fire Code with a section on fire extinguisher requirements. To get an overview of what state fire codes are based on and if states have made enhancements to fire codes visit the Interactive Fire Safety Map.
