Facts on Fire Safety



                       A SAFETY TALK FOR

                      DISCUSSION LEADERS



This safety talk is designed for discussion leaders to use in preparing safety

meetings.



Set a specific time and date for your safety meeting.  Publicize your meeting

so everyone involved will be sure to attend.



Review this safety talk before the meeting and become familiar with its

content. Make notes about the points made in this talk that pertain to your

workplace.  You should be able to present the material in your own words and

lead the discussion without reading it.



Seating space is not absolutely necessary, but arrangements should be made so

that those attending can easily see and hear the presentation.



Collect whatever materials and props you will need ahead of time.  Try to use

equipment in your workplace to demonstrate your points.





                      DURING THE MEETING



Give the safety talk in your own words.  Use the printed talk merely as a

guide.



The purpose of a safety meeting is to initiate discussion of safety problems

and provide solutions to those problems.  Encourage employees to discuss

hazards or potential hazards the encounter on the job. Ask them to suggest ways

to improve safety in their area.



Don't let the meeting turn into a gripe session about unrelated topics.  As

discussion leader, its your job to make sure the topic is safety.  Discussing

other topics wastes time and can ruin the effectiveness of your safety meeting.



At the end of the meeting, ask employees to sign a sheet on the back of this

talk as a record that they attended the safety meeting.  Keep this talk on file

for your records.





Facts on Fire Safety



It's hard to imagine what it would be like to live without fire. Think about

it.



Yet fire can be one of our deadliest enemies. It can mutilate us, kill us, and

destroy in a few minutes what took a lifetime to build. Fire can take away our

work places and our jobs.



How can fires be stopped? The answer is control. But to control fires we must

understand them and know how to deal with them.



Fire needs three elements to exist--fuel, oxygen and heat. To understand the

relationships, think of each as separate sides of a triangle. Fire need all

three elements in the proper proportions to exist. If one side of the triangle

is removed, the fire will go out.  For fuel to ignite, oxygen must be present;

then heat must be applied until the combustion point is reached. When this

point is reached, the fuel will ignite with the oxygen, consuming both fuel and

oxygen and giving off heat. If the oxygen is removed, the fire is smothered. If

the fuel is removed, there's nothing left to burn.  Oxygen? by itself, will not

burn. If the heat is lowered below the combustion point, the fuel and oxygen

will not unite and the fire will go out.



For your safety and the safety of your co-workers you should know where fire

extinguisher are located and how to use them properly.



Note to Discussion Leader:



Bring fire extinguisher to the meeting and demonstrate how to use it. Review

your company's fire record and discus it with employee. Describe the fire

protection available at your company, where fire extinguishers are located and

evacuation procedures.



The most important thing to remember about fire extinguishers is that you must

use the correct type for each kind of fire.



þ Class A fire--combustible? such as wood, paper and cloth



þ Class B fires--flammable liquids



þ Class C fires--electrical



There are several types of fire extinguisher: foam, carbon dioxide,soda acid,

pump tank, gas cartridge, multipurpose dry chemical and ordinary dry chemical.

Most extinguishers have label that list the type of fires that they can be used

for.



The most common extinguisher is the multipurpose dry chemical type. It can be

used for any class of fire. However, if the tag on the extinguisher is not

labeled ABC, you must know the type of fire the extinguisher can be used on.



Class A fires:



þ Foam



þ Soda Acid



þ Pump Tank (contains plain water)



þ Gas Cartridge (water expelled by carbon dioxide gas)



Class B fires:



þ Foam



þ Carbon Dioxide



þ Multipurpose Dry Chemical



þ Ordinary Dry Chemical



Class C fires:



þ Carbon Dioxide



þ Multipurpose Dry Chemical



þ Ordinary Dry Chemical



Remember, it's important to use the correct type of extinguisher for the fire

at hand. You should not use a water type extinguisher for a flammable liquid

fire because it would cause the fire to spread. And you would not use this type

of extinguisher on an electrical fire because this would expose you to a

serious or fatal shock.



For your safety and the safety of your co-workers:



þ Know where fire extinguishers and fire alarm boxes are located. Keep these

areas free of debris.



þ Store all flammable liquids in approved safety containers.



þ Observe no smoking signs at all times.



Fire is an essential part of our live. We cannot do without it, but we must

stop unwanted fires that can destroy our buildings, lives and job. Never take

the attitude that any building is f;reproof or that fires won't happen. Do what

you can to prevent fires, but always be prepared by knowing what actions to

take if one occurs. Good teamwork is a must. To prevent fires we must all work

together.





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