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Date:         Fri, 7 Apr 2006 18:39:49 -0400
Reply-To:     Mike Collum <collum@VERIZON.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Mike Collum <collum@VERIZON.NET>
Subject:      Re: VLC Fry-day: Putting out fires
In-Reply-To:  <4436E272.1030905@verizon.net>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

I've talked about this on the list before, but now is a good time to do it again as we have a different bunch of members.

I lost my '64 splittie to an engine fire on a freeway. I was doing about 70 (it had a 1500 engine) and the metal tube, that the fuel hose was securely clamped to, pulled out of the discharge side of the fuel pump. One of those mechanical pumps can put out an amazing amount of fuel at that speed.

Of course, it immediately lost power, I saw smoke in the mirror and pulled to the side as quickly as I could. My fire extinguisher was larger than the typical Westy extinguisher but did nothing toward putting out the fire. Two more good sized extinguishers were brought over by truckers and were expended without results. Finally, a fire truck showed up and had it out in short order.

So ... In that instance, 3 hefty extinguishers just weren't enough.

Mike

-------------------- wrote: > JIm, > Obviously the cause of the fire, (probably a shorted battery cable) > was still causing fires. > I've had to use fire extinguishers on 4 occasions. Two were > on gas pouring out of there fuel tanks. Without any further > ignition these fire went out with one very small burst from the > extinguisher. > > Jim Felder wrote: > >> Yesterday I rolled up to the first spot in the right lane of a busy >> intersection near the interstate. I was in my westy. I saw a guy get >> out of a huge seventies sled that had died in traffic and stick a >> cell phone to his ear and walk through busy traffic to a gas station >> nearby. Unbeknownst to him, the car, which had been smoking lighly >> from under the hood, started smoking a lot and dropping what looked >> like burning chunks of plastic or rubber onto the road beneath the >> engine compartment. The thing was thirty feet away. Black smoke was >> really billowing a few seconds later. I pulled my westy onto a >> concrete turn island and ran out the side door with the fire >> extinguisher. The wind was so high that I had to get nearly behind >> the car to make the spray hit the fire. By the time I got the aim >> right in the high winds, the fire extinquisher was nearly out. I was >> standing hear the gas tank, where I didn't want to be, and the fire >> was out, and the burnt wired shorted and the car tried to start >> itself again, so I ran back to the westy and climbed in and waited >> for the light to change. And waited and waited. The fire started up >> again. I waited and waited. I was afraid that all the surrounding >> cars and mine too would be blown to smithereens when the gas tank >> lit.It puts a different perspective on waiting when you think by >> staying you could get killed or burned, it's not like waiting in line >> at the store behind someone who has an envelope full of coupons and a >> bunch of stuff that won't scan. I waited and waited and waited some >> more. I wanted to run the light but there was too much traffic. >> Nobody else had a fire extinguisher, though a few had gotten out of >> their cars but were afraid to get close. I waited and waited and >> then the light turned green and I shot out of there like a slug out >> of hell (it's a diesel). >> . >> >> The moral of the story: one extinguisher won't do it, and nobody else >> has one, so carry two. >> >> Jim >> >> >


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