Main causes of forest fires

Humans are most often the cause of forest fires. Most fires occur as a result of agricultural fires, burning garbage, in picnic areas, picking mushrooms and berries, during hunting, from a thrown burning match, or an unextinguished cigarette. When the hunter shoots, the wad ejected from the gun begins to smolder, setting fire to the dry grass. A fire in the forest that is not completely extinguished causes major subsequent disasters. Depending on which parts of the forest the fire spreads, forest fires are usually divided into ground fires (up to 90% in number), crown fires and underground fires.

Observe the following rules in the forest:

During the fire danger period in the forest it is prohibited:

make fires, use barbecues, and other cooking equipment;
smoke, throw burning matches, cigarette butts, shake out smoking pipes burning ash;
shoot weapons, use pyrotechnic products;
leave cleaning material oiled or soaked in gasoline, kerosene or other flammable substances in the forest;
refuel the tanks of running engines internal combustion, take out for work equipment with a faulty engine power supply system, as well as smoke or use open fire near machines refueling;
leave bottles, glass fragments, and other debris in a sunlit clearing;
burn grass and stubble in the fields.

Persons guilty of violating the rules fire safety, depending on the nature of the violations and their consequences, bear disciplinary, administrative or criminal liability.

What to do if you find yourself in a forest fire area?

If the fire is grassroots or local, you can try to extinguish the flame yourself - knock it down by covering it with branches of deciduous trees, pouring water, throwing it with wet soil, or trampling it with your feet. When extinguishing a fire, act carefully, do not go far from roads and clearings, do not lose sight of other participants, maintain visual and audio contact with them.

If you do not have the ability to localize and extinguish the fire on your own:

Immediately warn everyone nearby to get out of danger zone;
organize people to go out onto the road or clearing, wide clearing, to the bank of a river or reservoir, into a field;
leave the danger zone quickly, perpendicular to the direction of fire movement;
if it is impossible to escape the fire, enter the pond or cover yourself with wet clothes;
Once in an open space or clearing, breathe, bending down to the ground - there the air is less smoky;
Cover your mouth and nose with a cotton-gauze bandage or cloth;
after leaving the fire zone, report the location, size and nature of the fire fire service, administration of the locality, forestry.

If there is a possibility of fire approaching your community, prepare for possible evacuation:

place documents and valuables in a safe, accessible place;
prepare for a possible emergency departure vehicles;
wear cotton or woolen clothing, have with you: gloves, a scarf to cover your face, goggles or other eye protection;
prepare a supply of food and drinking water;
carefully follow information messages on television and radio, public address systems, keep in touch with friends in other areas of your area;
avoid panic.

If you find fires, you need to call the Rescue Service by calling 01 from your mobile phone 112.

Rules of behavior and actions of the population in case of fire in populated areas

A fire is an uncontrolled combustion that causes material damage, harm to the life and health of citizens, and the interests of society and the state. The main fire factors leading to death and material damage are heat and toxic composition of combustion products. In the event of a fire, one must also be wary of collapses of building structures and explosions. technological equipment and appliances, sinkholes into the rotten floor of a building or soil, and the fall of burnt trees. It is dangerous to enter a smoke zone.

To avoid a fire, you need to know the main causes of its occurrence:

careless handling of fire - careless smoking, use of open flames indoors,
lighting fires near buildings, careless handling of objects household chemicals, flammable liquids. The source of increased fire danger are balconies, loggias, sheds, garages, cluttered with things.

Fires from electrical appliances occur when the network is overloaded with powerful consumers, due to incorrect installation or dilapidation of electrical networks, when using faulty electrical appliances or devices with open coils and leaving them unattended.

Fired stoves left unattended, use of gasoline to ignite them, lack of fire-proof cutting.

Fires from children's pranks with fire. Adults are often to blame for this because they leave children alone at home, do not hide matches, and do not control the actions and games of children.

Fires in transport due to faulty electrical and fuel devices.

Violation of the rules for conducting electric, gas welding and hot work is a common cause of fires.

Safety measures and rules of conduct in the forest

The human factor is one of the common causes of natural fires. To avoid accidental fires in the forest and the development of a natural fire in the forest, safety measures should be observed.

Do not throw burning matches or unextinguished cigarette butts on the ground.

Do not light fires during fire danger periods.

Do not burn garbage in the forest.

Do not use wads made of smoldering materials while hunting.

Do not leave garbage in the forest, especially cleaning material soaked in oil, gasoline or other flammable material.

Don't leave in the forest glass bottles or glass shards.

And follow the rules:

Light a fire only in designated areas.

If there are no such places, then prepare the site for its cultivation yourself, clearing it of grass, leaves and branches down to the ground.

The fire must be completely extinguished before leaving the site. Leave the resting place only after making sure that not a single log or branch is smoldering anymore.

In the event of a dangerous fire, extinguish the fire with water or, by covering it with earth, you can knock out the fire with branches of deciduous trees.

Rules of conduct in case of fire in the forest

Taking the right actions in the event of a forest fire will help you deal with it faster. emergency and save the forest, buildings, property and, possibly, lives. If you accidentally find yourself near a fire and are unable to independently cope with its localization and extinguishing. You should immediately warn everyone nearby about the danger. People must leave the danger area immediately. It is advisable to go out onto the road, clearing, wide clearing or to a pond. You should exit the fire zone perpendicular to the direction of the wind and the movement of the fire. If it is impossible to leave, you should enter the pond or cover yourself with wet clothes. If you manage to go out into the open, make sure you are safe, sit on the ground and breathe, covering your mouth with a rag or cotton-gauze bandage - the air near the ground is less smoky.

After leaving the fire zone, immediately notify the fire service or district administration about the fire. State the exact location of the fire and its approximate size. It is also advisable to know the local signals to alert the population about the approach of a fire and give such a signal so that people begin to take fire-fighting measures at home or on the outskirts of a populated area.

If possible, take part in firefighting activities. There are various ways to extinguish forest fires, but you must strictly follow the orders of the firefighters who happen to be nearby. In case of a ground fire, the flame can be knocked down with the help of branches of deciduous trees, filled with water, covered with earth or trampled underfoot. Peat fires are extinguished by digging up peat and pouring water. It should be remembered that peat burns unevenly. During a peat fire, quite deep craters can form into which you can fall. Therefore, you should move very slowly and carefully, probing the depth of the burnt-out layer. When extinguishing a fire, you should be very careful and cautious. The rate of fire development is very high. Do not move far from other rescuers, constantly maintain contact with each other, and do not go far from the clearing or road.

In the summer heat, forest fires occur quite often. While in the forest at this time, you need to handle fire very carefully so as not to cause the forest or grass to catch fire. And if a special fire mode in the region, it is generally prohibited to light an open fire or even be in the forest. But if you suddenly find yourself in the area of a forest fire, you need to know what to do and how to get out of such a situation.

Forest fires are mainly divided into two types riding And grassroots.

In a ground fire, the forest floor, grass, small shrubs and the root part of trees burn. Such a fire spreads quite slowly, 0.1-3 meters per minute.

In a crown fire accompanied by a strong wind, the fire spreads along the treetops and is spread by the wind from one crown to another very quickly. The speed of spread of such a fire can reach 80 meters per minute.

In any case, if you find that a forest fire is heading towards you, you need to evacuate immediately.

The first thing to remember is no panic. You need to calmly analyze the situation, understand how much time you have and accept correct solution what to do and where to go.

At the first opportunity, if time permits, you must inform the Ministry of Emergency Situations about the forest fire, describe what is happening, give your coordinates and approximate direction of movement. If you suddenly find yourself cut off by fire and have nowhere to go, rescuers will know where to take measures to rescue you. But you can’t hope that someone will save you and sit idly by, you have to act.

If you do not know how to properly extinguish a fire in a forest, if it has obviously already covered too much territory, and your group is small, then do not try to extinguish the fire yourself, do not waste time on this. It is better to report the fire to the Ministry of Emergency Situations by calling 112 and take measures for your own evacuation.

You should try to leave against the wind, and if this is not possible, then simply in the opposite direction from the fire boundary.

If the wind is blowing smoke and fumes in your direction, wet a T-shirt or rag, cover your face with it and breathe through it.

Try to get out of the dense forest onto a road or clearing, which are often along power lines. You can also move along a stream or river bank.

If your region is dominated by peat soils, then the fire can go underground. In this case, it burns the peat under the surface and you can fall into such a hidden hole. Therefore, find a suitable stick and carefully probe the soil in front of you.

If you find that you cannot get out of the fire area, try to get into an already burned area. It is best if you go out to some body of water - a pond or river. Enter the water and move away or swim away from the dangerous shore to a distance where the fire cannot reach you. Coastal thickets of reeds and reeds also burn, so you need to stay away from them.

If the body of water is too small and does not allow you to hide in it, wet all your clothes, make a wet bandage on your face, fill up any container with water and look for a safe place further. The collected water can be used to moisten the clothing and bandage as it dries.

If you have reached a safe place and are sure that you are no longer in danger, try to catch your breath. During a fire, smoke rises and the air near the ground is less smoky. Sit down and relax. While there is time, analyze the situation again and think about what you will do next. If you didn’t have time earlier, call your relatives and the Ministry of Emergency Situations and report the situation.

Well, the most important thing. Of course, you need to know what to do in case of a forest fire, but it is best to try not to get into such situations than to look for a way out of them later. The situation with forest fires in the regions is well covered in the news and you can view the information on the website of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. Moreover, if a special fire regime has been declared, it is better to refrain from going into the forest. Just find some other way to relax. Go to, visit a neighboring region where there is no threat of forest fires, or just go for an overnight stay.

In the forest you can stumble upon a small fire. Its causes are sometimes very diverse: for example, an abandoned and unextinguished cigarette butt, extremely dry weather, a fire built without following safety rules, a shot from a gun that was incorrectly loaded with a cartridge and with a paper wad, spontaneous combustion. Of course, first of all, you need to take measures to put out the fire or simply send someone to the nearest populated area for help.
There are three types of forest fires: ground fires, crown fires and underground (peat) fires.
Ground fires - usually 90% of all fires in the forest - primarily burn the lower parts of trees, grass, dead wood, protruding roots, and undergrowth. The propagation speed is from 1 to 3 meters per minute. The flame height is from 0.5 to 1.5 meters. At a speed of 3-4 meters per minute and average wind strength, a fire grows into a large one in 10-14 hours from several hundred square meters up to several hectares.
Crown fires - fire spreads through the crowns of trees, and at high speed - from 5 to 100 meters per minute or more. Possible only with strong wind, which carries burning branches, leaves and sparks over tens and hundreds of meters, and these, in turn, create new fires. Behind a short time can cover very large areas and cover long distances.
Peat fires are the slowest, spreading at a speed of several meters per day, but also the most dangerous. Their danger lies in the sudden breakthrough of fire from an underground hearth and burning out of the inner part of the peat over a significant area of the area. It often happens that this burnout is unnoticed, and this is fraught with serious consequences: you can easily fall into the resulting voids, moreover, with peat still smoldering. The main sign of an underground fire is smoke rising from under the soil and high ground temperature.
There is only one rule of conduct during a forest fire: if the fire cannot be extinguished, then you must leave it.
This is possible in most cases, because the speed of a pedestrian is 80 meters per minute, and the fastest ground fire is from 3 to 5 meters per minute. You should go in the windward direction, perpendicular to the fire front, using clearings, forest roads, clearings, forest streams and rivers for movement. In case of strong smoke, the mouth and nose should be covered with a wet cotton-gauze bandage, a towel, clothing, or, in extreme cases, a handkerchief, having previously soaked the fabric in water.
In case of a crown fire, it is much more difficult to escape, since the speed of its spread is too high and it grows too chaotically, but always with the wind. In case of a crown fire, when there is no way to escape, you need to find any body of water: from a forest stream or river to some hole filled with water, and wait out the fire there, passing it over you.

If you find yourself near a fire in a forest or peat bog:

If you find yourself near a fire in a forest or on a peat bog and you do not have the ability to localize it, prevent the spread and extinguish the fire on your own, immediately warn all people nearby about the need to leave the danger zone.

Organize their exit onto a road or clearing, a wide clearing, to the bank of a river or reservoir, or into a field.

Leave the danger zone quickly, perpendicular to the direction of fire movement. If it is impossible to escape the fire, enter a body of water or cover yourself with wet clothes.

When you go out into an open space or clearing, breathe the air near the ground - there it is less smoky, cover your mouth and nose with a cotton-gauze bandage or rag.

After leaving the fire zone, report the location, size and nature of the fire to the local administration, forestry or fire service, as well as the local population.

Small flame ground fires You can knock it down by overwhelming it with deciduous branches, filling it with water, throwing wet soil, or trampling it underfoot.

Peat fires are extinguished by digging up burning peat and pouring water on it.

When extinguishing a fire, act carefully, do not go far from roads and clearings, do not lose sight of other participants, maintain visual and audio contact with them.

When extinguishing a peat fire, keep in mind that deep craters can form in the combustion zone, so you should move carefully, having first checked the depth of the burnt layer.

Preventive measures for forest fires

To protect the population and reduce damage during massive fires, measures are taken in advance to lay and clear glades and dirt strips 5-10 meters wide in continuous forests and up to 50 m in coniferous forests.
Ponds and reservoirs are installed in populated areas, the capacity of which is taken at a rate of at least 30 cubic meters per 1 hectare of area of a village or settlement.
In case of fires in forests and peat bogs in populated areas, fire-fighting units are on duty to monitor fire situation in forests, near populated areas; the soil strips between the buildings and adjacent forest areas are being cleared; fire reservoirs are filled at the rate of at least 10 liters of water per 1 meter of length of the forest edge adjacent to the boundaries of residential areas and holiday villages; wells and ponds are being restored; cotton-gauze bandages, respirators and other respiratory protection products are manufactured; the regime for visiting forests during the dry period of summer is limited (especially by car).

Rules safe behavior during a forest fire

The main causes of forest fires:

The main culprit of forest fires is man - his negligence when using fire in the forest during work and rest. Most fires occur in picnic areas, picking mushrooms and berries, during hunting, from a thrown burning match, or an unextinguished cigarette. When the hunter shoots, the wad ejected from the gun begins to smolder, setting fire to the dry grass. You can often see how littered the forest is with bottles and broken glass. In sunny weather, these fragments focus Sun rays like incendiary lenses. A fire in the forest that is not completely extinguished causes subsequent great disasters.

Statistics natural fires recent weeks shows that their surge is observed on weekends, when people en masse head out to relax in nature.

Depending on which parts of the forest the fire spreads, forest fires are usually divided into ground fires (up to 90% in number), crown fires and underground fires (soil fires). In turn, ground and crown fires can be stable and fugitive.

In forest areas, ground fires most often occur, burning the forest floor, undergrowth and undergrowth, grass and shrub cover, dead wood, tree rhizomes, etc. During the dry period, when there is wind, crown fires pose a danger, in which the fire also spreads along the crowns of trees, mainly coniferous species. The speed of a ground fire is from 0.1 to 3 m/min, a top fire is up to 100 m/min in the direction of the wind.

When peat and plant roots burn, there is a risk of underground fires spreading in different directions. The ability of peat to spontaneously ignite and burn without access to air and even under water poses a great danger. Above burning peat bogs, the formation of “columnar vortices” of hot ash and burning peat dust is possible, which in strong winds are transported over long distances and cause new fires.

ATTENTION! DURING FIRE HAZARDOUS PERIOD REFRAIN FROM VISITING THE FOREST!

IF YOU FIND OUT IN THE FOREST, FOLLOW THE FOLLOWING RULES:

During the fire danger period in the forest it is strictly prohibited:

· make fires, use barbecues, and other cooking equipment;

· smoke, throw away burning matches, cigarette butts, shake out hot ash from smoking pipes;

· shoot weapons, use pyrotechnic products;

· leave cleaning material oiled or soaked in gasoline, kerosene and other flammable substances in the forest;

· fill the tanks of operating internal combustion engines with fuel, take out equipment with a faulty engine power supply system for work, and also smoke or use an open fire near vehicles being refueled;

· leave bottles, glass fragments, and other garbage in a sunlit forest clearing;

· burn grass and stubble in fields.

Persons guilty of violating fire safety rules, depending on the nature of the violations and their consequences, bear disciplinary, administrative or criminal liability.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE IN THE ZONE and FOREST (PEAT) FIRE.

If you find sources of fire, immediately notify the fire service by calling 01 (on mobile phone by number 112)!

If the fire is grassroots and local, you can try to extinguish the flame yourself: you can try to knock it down by covering it with deciduous branches, pouring water on it, throwing it with wet soil, or trampling it with your feet. Peat fires are extinguished by digging up burning peat and pouring water on it.

When extinguishing a fire, act carefully, do not go far from roads and clearings, do not lose sight of other participants, maintain visual and audio contact with them.

When extinguishing a peat fire, keep in mind that deep craters can form in the combustion zone, so you should move carefully, having first checked the depth of the burnt layer.

If you do not have the ability to localize and extinguish the fire on your own:

· immediately warn everyone nearby to leave the danger zone;

· organize people to go out onto the road or clearing, wide clearing, to the bank of a river or reservoir, into a field;

· leave the danger zone quickly, perpendicular to the direction of fire movement;

· if it is impossible to escape from the fire, enter the pond or cover yourself with wet clothes;

· Once in an open space or clearing, breathe, bending down to the ground - there the air is less smoky;

· cover your mouth and nose with a cotton-gauze bandage or cloth;

· after leaving the fire zone, report its location, size and nature to the fire service, local administration, and forestry.

If a fire approaches buildings directly and there is a threat of a massive fire in a populated area, the population, primarily children, the elderly, and the disabled, is urgently evacuated.

If there is a possibility of fire approaching your community, prepare for possible evacuation:

· place documents and valuables in a safe, accessible place;

· prepare vehicles for possible emergency departure;

· put on cotton or woolen clothes, have with you: gloves, a scarf to cover your face, goggles or other eye protection;

· Prepare a supply of food and drinking water;

· closely follow information messages on television and radio, warning means, keep in touch with your friends in other areas of your area;

· avoid panic.

How to act near a fire in a forest or peat bog

Organize their exit onto a road or clearing, a wide clearing, to the bank of a river or reservoir, or into a field.

Leave the danger zone quickly, perpendicular to the direction of fire movement.

If it is impossible to escape the fire, enter a body of water or cover yourself with wet clothes.

When you go out into an open space or clearing, breathe the air near the ground - there it is less smoky, while covering your mouth and nose with a rag (of clothing).

After leaving the fire zone, report the location, size and nature of the fire to the city administration, forestry and fire service.

The flames of small ground fires can be knocked down by overwhelming them with branches of deciduous trees, filling them with water, throwing them with wet soil, or trampling them underfoot.

Peat fires are extinguished by digging up burning peat and pouring water on it.

When extinguishing a fire, act carefully, do not go far from roads and clearings, do not lose sight of other participants, maintain visual and audio contact with them.

When extinguishing a peat fire, keep in mind that deep craters may form in the combustion zone, so you should move carefully, having first checked the depth of the burnt layer.