Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1921-06-17
THE FIRST FIVE MINUTES

experienced firemen claim that the
ilfst i've minutes at a fire is worth
more than the next five hours.
Not long ago a we'll meaning. but
misinformed, mayor of a southern
city had an ordinance passed limit
ing the speed of the fire department
to 10 miles an hour. Shortly after
wards that city suffered a very seri-
Gus loss by fire. How much of this
loss was due to the speed regula-
lions will never be known.
Have you ever stopped to consid-
er plan of action in case your
home caught on fire? 1t might be
well worth considering.
One sincere fire preventionist had
duties assigned to each member of
his family. In case of a fire. one
was to telephone the alarm, another
to run for help, another to use the
family fire eXtinguisher and still
oiiothCl W 1olly tSl Idlll NdludUleS
to safety. The chances are he will
never have a fire, but he will be
ready for one should it come,
Some citizens Of Pullman have
said that in case their home caught
on fire they would stand in the
road with a gun to prevent the fire
department from causing any more
damage. Yet I believe all will ac-
knowledge that the fire department
did good work in saving adjoining
property in the case of the chop mill
fire Possibly they cannot save your
property but they may prevent a
cOnflagration.
In case of a fire FIRST turn in
the alarm, and SECOND do all you
can to keep the fire down till help
arrives. | realize that in the past
and future we have trouble at
times in turning in fire alarm via
central" The only cure for that
is an Independent fire alarm circuit.
Under the present prospects it would
almost pay at times to run all the
way to the city hall to turn in the
alarm rather than wait for central
to answer the flash.
How would you fight blaze till
the fire department arrived? If dis
covered in time a bucket of water
will extinguish any blaze providing
the bucket of water is there to use.
A fire, as a rule, unless an explosion,
does not start instantaneously 1t
is usually preceded by some indica-
ton such as overheating, scorching,
or charring. For that reason, the
dangerous points of the house should
be known and observed at frequent
intervals, especially before leaving
the house or retiring at night.
Every home should have some ex-
tinguishing agent at hand ready to
use in case of a fire. Even a bucket
of water hung in the basement may
prove useful in an emergency. For
general use probably the best eX-
tinguisher obtainable is the ~ gal
lon soda acid type. 1t is easily op-
Grated by turning upside down and
is very effective.
| have noticed number OF dry
powder fire extinguishers about
town. They are practically useless
and are really dangerous due to the
false faith put in them. The lro-
ouois Theatre fire at Chicago has
been laid mainly to the use OF dry
powder extinguisher at the early
stages of the fire when a little water
would have easily eXtinguished the
blaze.
The small carbontetrachloride eX-
tinguishers, of which the Pyrene Is
the best known make, are very et-
fective on an oil or electric arc fire.
They should be used only with eX-
IRENE caution due to the dangerous
fumes given off,
If we could always discover fire
in it's insipient stage, fire fighting
would be very simple AS it is, each
fire is a problem of its own when
only years of experience will teach
how to combat.
The only thing you are absolutely
sure of in a fire is HEAT. On tha'
principle automatic agents have beer
devised for giving the alarm anC
combating fires. The most salts
factory system yet devised is the
automatic sprinkler which sprays
water from an outlet automatically
on the application of heat. The OPP
Grafton of automatic sprinklers has
proven so successful that insurance
companies are reducing their prem
iums 40 and so per cent as an IN
ducement for such installations. i