Plant Managers – Friday Plant Walk – Fire Extinguishers

Fire extinguishers – quick story first.

When we used to shut down for holidays, we’d keep a security guard on site those days. As HSE Manager, I always did one last plant walkthrough before leaving. This time, I saw flames coming out of an extruder throat. Turns out there was a piece of plastic left in the extruder, a heat zone controller shorted, heats ran away, plastic caught fire, etc. I threw the disconnect on the heat panel – plastic was still burning. Before I grabbed an extinguisher, I found the security guard. “Hey. This is minor, but we have a small fire over here. I’m about to use a fire extinguisher. I wanted you to know so you can back me up.” I don’t think the guard heard anything after the word “fire.” I was able to address it quickly because there was a nearby fire extinguisher. Monday, the operators were annoyed they had to do extra purging from the fire extinguisher powders, but what are you gonna do?

You probably have fire extinguishers all over your plant, warehouse, and in the offices.

Obvious, easy-to-check stuff, while you’re walking around:

• If you stop at random points in your facility, is it easy to spot the nearest fire extinguisher?
• Are there signs above them so they are easy to locate?
• Is there an extinguisher in each spot where there should be? They are used for firewatch sometimes, and not put back.
• Is the area around each fire extinguisher kept clear, so someone can access it in an emergency? Folks tend to stack boxes around them.
• In any given area, is the extinguisher near the exit? So someone using it is by that exit and can get out safely if the fire grows out of control?
• Look at the inspection tags – have they had the annual inspection this year? If you’re doing monthly inspections, are those current?
• Look at the pressure gauge if it has one – make sure it’s in the green range. If an extinguisher has been partially discharged, it should be replaced.
• Where are the spares? Are they inspected also? These should not be stored on the floor where they can get wet – the bottoms will rust out. There have been fatalities due to this. They also should not be stored on a shelf where they can be knocked off – they are pressurized cylinders!
• Note what type extinguishers you have: A, B, C, D, ABC, CO2.

Less obvious things:

• Are your folks trained on fire extinguisher use? If extinguishers are provided, and you expect your employees to use them, they should be trained initially on employment and annually.
• Who services your extinguishers? The vendor should be doing 12- and 6-year testing – you should have, or be able to quickly get, records of that testing, if someone were to ask.
• Do you have the right type extinguishers in the right locations? ABC types are good for general purpose use (paper, liquids, gases) but they make a mess in say, an electronics cabinet. A CO2 extinguisher may be better there.

Have a good weekend.

1910.157 – Portable fire extinguishers. | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (osha.gov)