Fighting grass fires

[EZLoader]

I saw folks in Oklahoma on the news this week fighting lines of grass fires (short grass) with shovels and picks. The ground was hard and they were barely making a dent with all their efforts.<br /><br />I read or saw a program once where they said the most effective way to stop a grass fire was to smother it at the advancing line. They said to get a section of carpet, soak it in water and drag it over the fire along the line. The demonstration showed that they had tied a rope to two corners of a 6'x8' piece of wetted carpet and pulled it over and along the fire line. The technique did a good job of smothering the flames and was followed up with someone with a portable tank sprayer following along and putting some water on the deadened smolder to prevent it from reflaming. <br /><br />I just wondered if the folks in Oklahoma and Texas even know about this or other grass fire fighting techniques. It seemed to work well on short grass with a small advancing flames. I wouldn't want to be out there trying it with tall grass and high winds.<br /><br />What are they telling you folks to do down in the south firelands?

 

[deputydawg]

Re: Fighting grass fires

Range fires I fought it would be impossible to do this. The last one I was at I was trying to get ahead of it with my truck. I was driving 60 and the fire passed me. Flames were over the top of the power lines, it looked like a flaming ball rolling along the ground. Fire itself creates a high wind that pushes the fire. <br /><br />The wet carpet idea contains the fire. We usually used old shovel handles with a truck mud flap attached kind of like a large fly swatter. We would smother the fire with that. The fire trucks and aircraft would fight the head fire. All we did with smothering was contain the trailing fire. When the main fire would pass we would station along the sides where it had burned and put out the fire there to keep it from starting back up. <br />Another way we did it was with weed sprayers on the back of 4 wheelers. <br />The only way to stop a real range fire is run it out of fuel. Keep it contained if possible intil it hits a road or something wide enough to stop it. A normal 2 lane highway won't stop it because it will roll over it. We would usually start in a road ditch and light small fires we could contain to back fire and eliminate the grass fuel supply.<br />Fires spread wide enough, and have mutiple head fires so this is not alwasy possible. <br />In short grass the blanket or carpet will work to stop a fire.

 

[EZLoader]

Re: Fighting grass fires

I guess the carpet technique might work for amatuers to stop a small fire that just started before it became a big one. I think that was the jist of the show that I saw this technique on. <br /><br />Do the winds die down at night and could you safely light some backfires then to minimize the fuel. I was wondering if they could burn some firebreaks ahead of time or is that just asking for trouble by starting another fire.

 

[heycods]

Re: Fighting grass fires

A damx good description Dawg.

 

[dogsdad]

Re: Fighting grass fires

I've fought a few range fires myself as a volunteer fireman. We used these things that were like a mud flap off a big rig, attached to the end of a long handle. We generally would attack the fire along both flanks and try to outrun it and pinch it off. But this was out in extreme west Texas---the trans-Pecos region, where the fuel was considerably sparser than in the areas of North Texas and Oklahoma where we're having problems now.<br /><br />There's nothing quite like the feeling of having to keep moving and putting 110% into the effort even when you're absolutey spent, parched, and exhausted. I don't know if I would have worked harder had there been bad guys chasing and shooting at me.

 

[deputydawg]

Re: Fighting grass fires

The bad thing is like what happened to me and a few others one fire. We were on the rear flank smothering the small fires when suddenly one flared up and came around us. We were in the middle of a ring of fire with no way out. We were lucky to be able to run to a spot that had already burned and wait a few minutes for it to pass. Those dang things move way too fast and hot to put out. Even the water poured onto them vaporizes and does little good.

 

[Kenneth Brown]

Re: Fighting grass fires

We have those paddles on our trucks. They seem to work pretty well. There was a fire a few weeks ago in a neighboring county. The woman on the brush truck had it set to straight stream. It would hit the fire and just push it further into the dead grass.

 

[Braxton]

Re: Fighting grass fires

I have been on the job here in florida 18 years now we have grass fires and woods fires even when the stuff is green very hard to control, alot of our trees and bushes have a oily base to them and will burn very black at times. for those of you wishing to help put out the small fires please be very careful. the safest place to be is in the burned area or what we call the black. grass fires will burn you or even kill you as quickly as a house fire. as a matter of fact i can be more in control in a house fire than a woods fire. so please be carefull and to my fellow brothers and sisters in the service keep rocking and be safe.

 

[Serentiy]

Re: Fighting grass fires

We were lucky Last sunday we had a fire started by kids lighting fire works and throwing them out of a car window . The fire moved alone the west side of our house 1 mile away from us it went 10 miles north in under 1 hour. we were lucky the wind kept it north. we had four garden hoses spraying our yard and house and our neighbors doing the same. I thought about getting a petition signed around the city that if they catch them they will pay 1/3 of everybodys water bill in a 2 mile radius of the fire. we can prove how much water we used that day. Do you think it will work? Good ideal anyway<br />Serenity

 

[heycods]

Re: Fighting grass fires

Originally posted by Serenity:<br /> We were lucky Last sunday we had a fire started by kids lighting fire works and throwing them out of a car window . The fire moved alone the west side of our house 1 mile away from us it went 10 miles north in under 1 hour. we were lucky the wind kept it north. we had four garden hoses spraying our yard and house and our neighbors doing the same. I thought about getting a petition signed around the city that if they catch them they will pay 1/3 of everybodys water bill in a 2 mile radius of the fire. we can prove how much water we used that day. Do you think it will work? Good ideal anyway<br />Serenity

If they catch them, the little "heatherns:" will pay more than a water bill Im betting.

 

[Kiwi Phil]

Re: Fighting grass fires

A short handle with 6 or so strips of old fire hose screw'd to the end makes our 'beaters'. Also have 3 15L backpack sprayers (Solo). Only really good for short grass and low winds. Keep our grass mowed ALL the time, even in a drought, as it moves fast over grass. Flying embers are our problem, especially when there is a sea of them. I hate all fires.<br />Cheers<br />Phillip

 

[salty87]

Re: Fighting grass fires

great topic. here's a question....<br /><br />how far should cedar and other trees be trimmed back from bldgs? i know it depends on winds and other factors but what's the general rule? i've been clearing the area around my house for months now. it's crazy how jam-packed neighborhoods are with cedar trees all over the place.

 

[salty87]

Re: Fighting grass fires

anyone?

 

[heycods]

Re: Fighting grass fires

I havent a clue we dont have cedar around the house,the stuff burns like gasoline, I wouldnt wont it nearer than 150-200', maby further with a shake or wood shingle roof. A good size cedar when burning at the fire I was at the other day would probably throw burning embers 3 or 4 hundred yards. we had SW wind at about 30 to 40 mph. All the heat caused by the fire causes the embers to shoot up into the air 50 ' or so.

 

[Serentiy]

Re: Fighting grass fires

We got one of them) Now we are trying to get them to rat out the other rats that started the nine fires. they burned over 500 acres and 1o structors. some of the homeowners are my friends.they were doing all they could to save there hard earned belongings.<br />only if the system will make them own up the the damage they caused. and other will learn and not repeate what theese nonsence acts of childhood.<br />I,m trying to be nice and family like here.<br />Sereinity

 

[Elmer Fudge]

Re: Fighting grass fires

Almost all of the grass fires here were started by idiots tossing their cigarettes out whilst driving, yesterday morning a grass fire got very close to a boat dealership near to lake lewisville, off of I35.