DICKSON CITY, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Smoke filled the air in a local community throughout this weekend. While something was burning, it was all part of a training exercise.
The large receptacle that looks like a mobile container could not contain all of the smoke from a controlled burn.
The ones who set the fire are instructors from the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy.
They are teaching how to identify and deal with flashovers, a potentially deadly eruption of flames which occurs when smoke and toxic gas become superheated and mix with the air around them.
"Our gear is not designed to protect us from that, nor is it good for any potential victims or citizens inside of a home," Pennsylvania State Fire Academy Fire Instructor Mark Barto said.
Barto says their gear is rated up to 1,200°, but a flashover can exceed 2,000°, making it one of the greatest risks to first responders.
He says synthetic materials, like polyester foams and plastics, are becoming more and more prevalent in modern homes.
These materials burn longer and at higher temperatures than wood, making all of these factors a potential recipe for disaster.
Suspect arrested after arson at Governor’s House
"When we show up, we want to apply water, but to do that, we have to open a door. When we open that door, we introduce oxygen, normally to an oxygen-starved fire," Barto explained.
This weekend's two-day training exercise taught firefighters from Dickson City, Throop, and Blakely Fire Departments how to identify and deal with flashovers.
One firefighter who took part in the training tells 28/22 News that while he thankfully has not yet experienced a flashover, the training was about as close as you can get to the real thing.
"So you go in and you sit down, there's two guys in the back with the doors. They have the fire getting warm, and then they'll open the doors, introducing air to the fire, which causes the flashover. So then they'll close the doors, and the flashover will happen. You really experience what it's like," Dickson City Fire Department Lieutenant Xander Oakey said.
He says this training gives him and his team the knowledge, tools, and confidence to know how to avoid a flashover when responding to a fire.
"It gives us skills that we know when to get out, and if it's getting too hot, that we need to pull everybody out," Lieutenant Oakey added.
The Pennsylvania State Fire Academy has two fire training containers. One is stationed in Lewistown, Mifflin County.
A mobile fire training container is typically used each week throughout the commonwealth to give firefighters statewide the training needed to deal with flashovers.
