Another problem with Halons is they have no cooling = properties. The statement that "Once the fire is out, it is = out" is not strictly correct. If the engine is still hot enough it = will reignite as soon as you remove the halon. The triangle of = combustion states you need 3 things for combustion to occur:

1. Fuel
2. Heat
3. Oxygen

So you can put a fire out by removing any side of the = triangle. Halons remove the oxygen but as soon as you remove the halon, = the oxygen is back.

Water removes the heat so even when you remove the = water there isn't usually sufficient heat to re-ignite.

The third side of the triangle can be removed by = either removing the fuel(Gasoline, an old rag you forget, etc.) or just = letting the van burn until there is no more fuel left, the contents of = the van also count as fuel in this equation.

Although no one wants to see their beloved van burn = just remember, you can get a new van, human bodies aren't that easy to = replace. Saying that though, every TV show I have ever seen where the = vehicle was in an accident or fire, it has blown up. I was a = firefighter in England for 11 years and we had a particularly busy = freeway close by. I have attended over 100 car smashes and never seen = one explode. I have also seen hundreds of car fires, sometimes where = there was not much more than shell left when we got there and none of = them ever exploded either.

You would have to make a judgment call as to how much = you are going to do with a burning vehicle before you give up but you = should always err on the side of safety without getting too Hollywood = explosion paranoid.

Melvin