Firefighters warn unwanted help can be dangerous, costly

Some unwanted “help” at a house fire Tuesday could have resulted in injury and increased property damage. While there is a natural tendency to help on the part of many people, fire officials stress that firefighting should totally be left up to the professionals.

“We had a person come on our scene and turned our hydrant on before we were ready and also grabbed our attack line,” Fire Chief Mark Whiteside said. “He could have hurt or killed us and or himself. He said he was just trying to help. He almost did just the opposite.”

When the unnamed individual did this, it jammed the supply hose in the hose bed, causing it to kink and interrupt water flow.

The hose on top was charged too soon and is kinked in places obstructing water flow.

“This is bad, very bad,” he said. “This prevented our crews from receiving water if needed due to the kinks and blockages. “

“When he did this we had to stop, shut down everything, drain the hose and resupply,” Whiteside said.

Fortunately, firefighters had laid a second line, which is not always done. Otherwise the likelihood of increased damage while efforts were interrupted would have been much greater.

“Apparently the same individual that prematurely turned our water on also grabbed our inch-and-three-quarter charged attack line and was preparing to spray the electrical meter base with water,” Whiteside said. “All this was being done without our knowledge and while our crews were attempting to set the fire scene up.”

Obviously, spraying water on a live 240-volt power supply service is not recommended, he said.

The fire in question, at 314 E. Bankhead Street, had in fact been started when a power washer sprayed water into the electrical service, causing a short and arcing. The fire was actually extinguished with dry chemicals, which was a safer, more efficient course of action.

Basically, fire hoses weigh a lot and, when charged, have a lot power contained in them.

If one is broken it can whip around with the force of hundreds of pounds. Whiteside said that one firefighter in Marshall County was injured by such an accident and there have been incidents all around the world with serious injuries and even death resulting from runaway hoses.

Even running a vehicle over an uncharged hose can damage it and can drag it, knocking firefighters to the ground or doing worse.

It is illegal in Mississippi to drive over a fire hose, by the way.

When personnel fight a fire a supply hose connects from a truck to a fire hydrant, that provides water at about 90 pounds per square inch. A 100-foot uncharged five-inch hose weighs about 100 pounds and water is about 8.75 pounds per gallon. When one adds the two the weight is an immense 944 pounds. “We can’t move it once it’s charged,” Whiteside said. But if it breaks and moves on its own it can be deadly.

The attack line, from the pumper truck to the firefighters, operates at a higher pressure of 125 to 150 psi and has even more force. “It takes two men to hold it,” Whiteside said. “One person cannot control a two-and-one-half-inch line.”

While warning against interfering in firefighting efforts, Whiteside offered a side note.

He said they sometimes arrive at a fire where an individual says he has already opened the doors and broken windows “to let the smoke out.”

“Do not do this,” Whiteside emphasized. “It only provides more oxygen for the fire.”

“Our crews are highly trained and proficient individuals that when placed together as a team perform like a well-oiled machine,” Whiteside said. “We all have a plan and a pattern of what to do when we are called. All members have radio communication with each other, and we all know what each other are doing.”

“We understand the public just wants to help, but it sometimes causes unnecessary damage or threat to human life in the process,” Whiteside said. “When we arrive on the scene, please let us do what we are trained and paid to do. If we need assistance we will get or ask for what is needed.”

“These two incidents Tuesday could have had such a negative outcome, and happened before we could stop it,” he said. “Luckily the person was stopped before they could turn the water from the hose on and spray an already-live arcing meter base.”

“We understand just wanting to help.” He continued. “However, sometimes untrained help can have negative outcomes. Please be careful and safe until we can arrive, and when we do arrive, please let our highly trained and extremely proficient people do their jobs to mitigate the incident.”