If anyone involved in a fire, there may be times when it's best for them to get to safety instead of trying to fight the fire. In fact, there are times when fighting the fire may increase the danger to them and to others in the area.

If anyone cannot put out the fire or if the extinguisher becomes empty, they should evacuate themself and everyone in the building immediately, closing all doors behind them as they go and ensure the fire brigade has been called.

Main Steps To Use Fire Extinguisher:

Step 1: Know What Kind of Fire It Is: It is important to know what type of fire we're trying to put out so that we can be sure to use the right type of fire extinguishers. Fire experts have named the different types of fires using a 5-letter naming system (Type A, Type B, Type C, Type D, and Type K). The type of fire depends on what the fire is burning.

Step 2: Get the Right Type of Fire Extinguisher: The easiest way is to look at the label on the fire extinguisher. It will tell us what type of fire the fire extinguisher can safely put out.

Some extinguishers can only put out one type of fire. For example, we may see a fire extinguisher with an "A" rating. We should only use that type of extinguisher on Type A fires. On the other hand, some fire extinguishers can put out several different types of fires. For example, we may see a fire extinguisher with an A, B, and C rating. We could use that type of fire extinguisher to put out Type A, Type B, and Type C fires.

The important thing to remember is to make sure the fire extinguisher we want to use has a label saying it can safely extinguisher the type of fire we're trying to extinguish.

Step 3: PASS Method for Using a Fire Extinguisher: The acronym PASS is used to describe four basic steps shown below:

• Pull: Pull the pin, this will break the tamper seal.
• Aim: Aim low, pointing the nozzle or hose at the base of the fire. Do not touch the horn on a CO2 extinguisher, it gets very cold and can damage the skin.
• Squeeze: Squeeze the handle to release the extinguishing agent.
• Sweep: Sweep from side to side at the base of the fire, the fuel source, until the fire is out.

Step 4: Remember when to Quite Fighting the Fire and Evacuate the Fire Scene: When we're actively fighting the fire, we should remember there may be cases when we'll have to give up, so we should quit fighting the fire, and evacuate the fire area for our own safety.