Over the weekend, three people were hurt in a mobile home fire in southern Indiana, and four people died in a mobile home fire in Winnemucca, Nev.
These deadly incidents are a reminder of the dangers of fires in mobile homes and the care firefighters must take in responding to them. Following are a few tips on mobile home firefighting from FireRescue‘s Fire Attack columnists.
From Chief Greg Jakubowski of the Lingohocken Fire Department:
- Think Easy-Bake Oven on a bigger scale. The construction common to mobile home keeps the heat inside. The kitchen and living space is at one end, the bedrooms at the other–with limited means of egress and little or no fire partitions in the small units to contain the fire in one section.
- To be successful at mobile home fires, you will need to keep the fire at one end or the other. Entering with the nozzle at the end of the mobile home where the fire is will simply push the fire through the home. At the same time the nozzle crew enters, take out the windows at the other end to ventilate. This will allow the nozzle crew to push the heat out.
- A quick fire knockdown is about your only hope of successfully rescuing any victims that might remain in the unit upon your arrival. Mobile home roofs are not generally designed to support the weight of a person, and it’s likely not worth the time or effort to try vertical ventilation.
- In many cases, cooking and heating for the home is provided by propane, so a large propane tank will be alongside or nearby the unit. Protect the tank from fire impingement. Cooking and heating can also be provided by electricity or natural gas. Take the time to check for these hookups on arrival–or better yet, ahead of time by touring mobile homes in your coverage area.
From District Chief Tom Lakamp and Captain Mike Kirby of the Cincinnati Fire Department:
- Mobile home fires present challenges that are different than standard wood-frame constructed residences. The first difference is the use of weaker construction materials (shells and walls), with paper-thin ceiling and floor coverings and lightweight structural members. The interior finishes are often made of highly flammable materials, usually paneling as opposed to drywall or plaster.
- The small spaces, use of lightweight flammable materials for interior finishes, small room sizes, and larger fire loads compared to available square footage all lead to an increased potential for flashover or rapid fire progression.
- There are also different access problems with relatively small window openings, narrow hallways, and no fire stops. Often entrances are limited or located remote from sleeping areas. This makes line placement and search activities a challenge to responding firefighters.
- Mobile homes generally burn faster than permanent structures. The first firefighters and company officers must make a risk/benefit analysis upon arrival, determining if the fire progression or likely fire progression, coupled with the chance of survival of any occupants, dictates interior or exterior operations. Always be alert for signs of impending flashover and weakened structural elements.
Stay safe out there!
