BARN FIRES:
SAD BUT PREVENTABLE
by
Laurie Loveman
(First Appeared in APPALOOSA WORLD, November, 1984)
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Most barn fires are preventable, yet most barn fires begin because of our own apathy regarding fire prevention. We hang up a “no smoking” sign and figure we've done all we can to protect our horses and barns. And some of us pay dearly for our neglect of basic fire safety practices.
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Fire prevention begins with an understanding of how fire starts and keeps burning. Just as we need oxygen, so does a fire, and in approximately the same amounts. The air we breathe is twenty-one per cent oxygen. If the level of oxygen should fall below sixteen per cent, there is not enough oxygen to support life, nor is there enough to support combustion. Our barns, usually designed to provide good ventilation, will permit a continuous supply of oxygen to a fire.
And as we need fuel in the form of food to keep our bodies functioning, so does a fire. Fuels are found in three physical states: gases (natural gas, propane, hydrogen); liquids (gasoline, kerosene, alcohol, paint); and solids (coal, wood, grease, grain, hay). Very few, if any, compressed gases will be found in a barn, except perhaps temporarily, for example, if welding repairs must be made. Long-term storage or continual use of compressed gases in a barn should never be considered. Liquid fuels are more common. Alcohol, alcohol-based liniments and rubs, hoof tars, and creosote can be found in any barn. Of course, solid fuels are available in abundance—hay, straw, loose or baled shavings, grain, and the materials of which the barn is constructed.
Along with oxygen and fuel, there must be a source of heat that raises the fuel to its ignition point. Heat can be provided by sunlight, friction, electrical energy, compression of gases, bacterial or chemical reactions, and open flame. Combining heat with oxygen and fuel will permit a fire to start, but in addition to these factors, fire is maintained by chemical reactions that occur in the flame area itself, reactions which produce additional fuel and heat.
Fire suppression is successful when the tactics employed reduce or remove any of the essential components a fire needs to continue. Water is the most commonly used suppression material because of its ability to quickly lower temperatures.
Knowing fire-propagation requirements enables you to minimize chances for
a fire to start, so if you are planning to construct a new barn, fire prevention
should begin with the initial sketches. Don't take for granted that your
architect or professional barn builder or general contractor will be familiar
with fire safety codes and construction requirements as they apply to stables—they
should, but many, especially small local barn builders, don't.
All barns, regardless of size, should have a minimum of two exits, both of which are easily accessible and have no impediments to their immediate use. That is, don't allow doorways or aisles to become storage areas; doors should never be blocked. The common rule for number of exits is: up to 12 horses, 2 exits; 12-24 horses, 3 exits; 24-36 horses, 4 exits; and 36-50 horses, 5 to 6 exits. Ideally, these means of egress should allow you to lead a horse into the aisleway and then directly to the outside in a straight line.
Aisles should be wide enough to comfortably accommodate two handlers and two horses side-by-side, and exit openings must be as wide as the aisle to prevent “jamming” at the doorway. Doors should either slide completely to one side or the other, or open outward. Latches must be easily operable with one hand.
If the stall layout is such that there is a long stretch of stalls on one side of an aisle, or two lines of stalls fronting on an aisle, a solid partition should be constructed between every fourth stall to separate it from its neighbor. This floor-to-ceiling solid partition will keep flames from jumping stall partitions into the next group of stalls.
Hay and bedding are best stored in a separate building, but since this is
not often practical, stall-level storage areas, if there is no other option,
should be completely separated from the stall area in a room enclosed with
one-hour fire-resistant roofing and wall materials. Upper-level hay storage
is preferable to open stall-level storage because heat, smoke, and flame
move upward. Should a fire begin on the second floor, upward movement of
the fire and its products will allow more time for evacuation of horses from
the lower level. The least preferable storage areas are those in close proximity
to stalls. If there is absolutely no other option than this location, though,
arrangement of the hay stacks should keep bales at least fifteen feet from
the nearest stall.
For those of us who have “inherited” our barns, there is much we can do to minimize errors in design. Fire prevention, for the most part, consists of practices, that is, the things we do on a day-to-day basis to maintain a fire-safe building. Knowing fire propagation requirements will help you to keep an eye out for possible hazards.
Obviously, the most common source of heat is an open flame—a match. Stringently enforce the no smoking rule, not just by posting signs, but by firmly telling a smoker to refrain. There is a “code” that's come down through the years which implies that a horseman can smoke in his own barn, but not in someone else's. Perhaps this “code” evolved because a horseman supposedly knows the “safe” areas in his barn. However it came about, the “code” is not only absurd, it's dangerous. There are no safe smoking areas in a barn.
Cleanliness in the barn requires minimal effort if you keep up with it, and maintaining a clean barn is excellent fire protection. Get rid of cobwebs hanging from the rafters; cobwebs provide excellent pathways along which flame can travel—so quickly that in seconds fire will have spread from one end of the barn to the other. Futhermore, flaming pieces of cobwebs falling into stalls will start new fires. Keep loose hay and straw swept up, and if you have hay drops, don't permit loose hay to hang over the edges; like cobwebs, flaming bits of hay can drop through and start other fires.
Bacterial and chemical actions are blamed for a great many fires, particularly
those where it is determined that the fire started in a stack of hay. The
best preventive measure for spontaneous ignition is to not accept any load
of hay that is not completely cured, since during the curing process heat
is generated. Clover and alfalfa hay seem to be particularly prone to incomplete
curing, and first- cutting alfalfa is often subject to this problem. In a
stack of uncured hay two fire propagation requirements—fuel and heat—are
at work. The only thing lacking in sufficient quantity is oxygen. The hay
may smoulder unnoticed for quite some time before the edge of the stack is
reached. When that happens, and oxygen is suddenly available in abundance
and there is a means for the generated heat to escape, you have a full-blown
fire on your hands. The same process may occur with damp grain, sawdust,
or wood shavings, too, and in these situations an explosion may result due
to the greater amount of exposed surfaces in the material. The presence of
chemical reactions leading to spontaneous heating and ignition can be detected
by a “sooty” odor, and sometimes, mild eye irritation when in the
immediate vicinity of the hay stack. If you have the slightest suspicion
that spontaneous heating is occurring, call your fire department without
delay!
Misuse of electricity is another major cause of fires. All electrical wiring should be enclosed in conduit; it is probably a requirement of your city's building code. If there is any exposed structural wiring in your barn, call in a qualified electrician and get the situation corrected. Conduit is used to protect wiring from friction and wear; exposed wires are subject to corrosion from weather and destruction by animals and birds. If you are planning a barn, locate your incoming electric supply away from any doorways so a fire occurring at the main panel will not make an exit unusable.
Lightening rods are your best protection against Mother Nature's electricity. Years ago in some areas, an electrical storm almost guaranteed that someone's barn would catch fire, and fire fighters knew with the first crack of lightening that they'd be called out before the storm was over. Today, electrical storms are less of a threat, not because Mother Nature's made them milder, but because lightening rods are readily available and easily installed by professional installers.
The major concern with electricity on a day-to-day basis, however, is with portable appliances. Kerosene heaters, electric heaters, and infrared lights, are the biggest single cause of barn fires today! Heating appliances have no place in a barn except for your comfort, so if you can possibly find justification for the use of such appliance, make absolutely certain your portable heater is designed to instantly shut off in case it is tipped over. Under no circumstances should a heater or auxiliary light be placed in a stall. If an animal must be kept warmer than usual, blanket it. Other electric appliances such as radios, clippers, and extension cords should be disconnected when not in use.
Fire prevention cannot be neglected outside the barn. Destroy weeds growing close to the barn and keep all pastures mowed to lessen the danger of brush fires. If your pastures front on a road, it's a good idea to leave a barren strip about fifteen feet in width to guard against fires resulting from carelessly tossed cigarettes.
Gasoline-powered vehicles should be stored away from the barn, but if it is necessary to keep them close by, they should be parked a minimum of fifteen feet away from any structures housing animals. Farm equipment and trailers, also, should be parked some distance from the barn so that debris does not collect behind equipment. It's amazing how many items can be “stored” under or behind seldom-used farm equipment—those items provide excellent fuel. Additionally, should the need arise, keeping equipment away from the barn allows firefighters space in which to work.
Perhaps your barn is not easily seen or accessible from the road. What can
you do about this? Call your fire department and inform them of the situation.
Request that your fire prevention officer make a plan (called a pre-plan)
of your property. With you, fire department members will inspect your property
to acquaint themselves with factors that will be advantageous or might be
detrimental in case of fire. They will note the location of the nearest hydrant
if there is one, and if not, will be prepared to make other arrangements
for a water supply.
But what if fire starts? You want to be alerted as soon as possible! Smoke detectors installed in homes have been credited with saving many lives by warning residents of danger and allowing them time to escape. Unfortunately, residential-type smoke detectors do not work well in barns because dust soon clogs the mechanism, rendering it inoperable. It can be of value only if it is cleaned daily. There are some detectors available that are designed to operate in dusty areas, but they must be professionally installed and usually cost considerably more than residential detectors. If you can afford the expense—costs may reach several thousand dollars for some types—it is a worthwhile investment.
It's frightening to consider that a fire might start when no one is home or near the barn, so an alerting system tied through phone lines to a monitoring station can bring great peace of mind. The fire department will be notified immediately, even if you are unavailable. The Yellow Pages of your telephone directory lists under the heading, Fire Alarm Systems, firms who install alerting devices.
An intercom system can be helpful when you are at home. If you are unaccustomed to continuous use of an intercom, a few days of “training” will teach your ears to sift out the usual from the unusual and you will no longer hear the bumping of salt blocks in feed tubs or similar normal sounds. What you will hear is anything else—a horse in difficulty, intruders, frightened neighs. An intercom system doesn't have to be elaborate or expensive. It is a valuable instrument for “seeing” your barn when you're in your house.
Any alerting system you use should have a siren or bell that can be heard from some distance. If alerting of helpers is done by someone in the barn, he or she must have access to a manually-operated farm bell outside the barn.
Fire suppression—the action taken to extinguish a fire—is often limited in barns because of the high combustibility level of the contents and because as soon as the fire department is notified (this should always be the first action taken), evacuation must proceed if it is not already underway. Portable fire extinguishers are a must in a barn and they should be of the ABC type. Unless the fire is small and the individual who has accidentally caused the fire, or discovered it, is right on the scene, the use of a portable fire extinguisher is somewhat limited. The range and time of effectiveness is relatively short, however, they may be the device that at least contains the fire until help arrives, so every person who is normally in the barn should be trained in the correct use of extinguishers. Locate the extinguishers at a height convenient for everyone to reach, and post signs indicating their location. Extinguishers should be checked every six months and recharged annually; fire protection companies will do this for you on an automatic basis.
The National Fire Protection Association Codes lists requirements for automatic sprinkler systems for use in racetrack barns. Small systems for use in private barns have not come into widespread use, but it is helpful to know something about them. There are two main types of sprinkler systems in general use today; the wet-type and the dry-type. The wet-type of sprinkler system has water in its pipes all the time. Seals on the sprinkler heads keep the water from discharging unless heat generated by a fire melts the seals. Water is then dispersed by all the sprinkler heads whose seals have been melted. Dry-type systems are more useful in northern climates where water cannot be maintained in the pipes because of freezing temperatures. The dry-type system, therefore, operates on a slightly different principle. Water is maintained, not in the pipes, but in an area kept at above-freezing temperatures. The water is held back by air under pressure, and release of the air by the melting of the seal on a sprinkler head allows the water to flow.
Sprinkler systems are effective suppression devices and contrary to commonly-held
notions, no person or animal has drowned under the spray, nor panicked as
a result of the shower. Despite the limited use in small private barns, a
sprinkler system should definitely be considered for new construction of
larger public facilities, even if not required by city building codes. Insurance
savings alone will pay for the cost of a sprinkler system.
Unless a fire is strictly chemical or electrical in origin, your best suppression weapon is water. Water, however, must never be used on an electrical fire because water will conduct electricity and deliver a possibly lethal shock to the person handling the hose. THE FIRST THING TO DO WITH AN ELECTRICAL FIRE IS TO CUT OFF THE POWER, then use only an ABC fire extinguisher to prevent electrocution.
Most barn fires are wood or vegetable in origin, so a water supply is of utmost importance. A five-eighths-inch rubber or vinyl hose, in a length at least the length of the barn, should be maintained on a reel mounted halfway along the aisleway and beside a reliable water supply. If your barn is longer than fifty feet, you might consider using two hoses, one mounted at each end of the barn, but keep in mind that one or the other may become unusable due to fire, so the remaining hose length should permit you to “cover” the other end of the barn also. Snap-on hose connectors can be used if the hose is also used for daily operations. If a brass nozzle cannot always be attached to the hose, it should be located right by the water source and equipped with a snap-on connector. Several times a year check the hose for signs of wear and repair as needed. A word of caution: flat woven-fabric hoses are now available and may appear attractive for use as a fire hose because of their compactness. Do not, under any circumstances, rely on such a hose in any situation where you need water in a hurry. These hoses kink and prevent the rapid passage of water.
A telephone is not a luxury in the barn. In case of injury or fire it is your means of summoning professional help. Most areas of the country now have 9-1-1 emergency service, but not all areas have enhanced service which pinpoints the location of the call, so you must be prepared to provide complete information to the dispatcher. Calling the fire department in the midst of an emergency, however, should not require that you do anything more than read. Even if you are on your own property, the stress of the situation may make you forget your address. To make this extremely important call and relay information accurately, post a large sign just above or beside the phone. Print out instructions. You have to tell the caller exactly what to do and say, as in this example: CALL FIRE DEPARTMENT AT (your fire department's number). SAY: I HAVE A STABLE FIRE AT (stable address). Note that the caller is instructed to say “stable fire” and not “barn fire.” This is to avoid confusion as to what type of structure the fire department is responding. A barn fire is far different than a fire in the local saloon. If special directions are needed to reach your address, print those also. Plastic signs with spaces for you to write in your own information are now available at tack shops and feed stores. Whether you purchase a sign or create your own, make certain that the information both you and the fire department need is right there at eye level.
The dispatcher may repeat, or ask you to repeat the information. Do so slowly and distinctly. You may be terribly impatient under the circumstances, but the time taken is only seconds and the one thing you don't want to do is accidentally misdirect the fire department.
If evacuation of animals is not already underway, this is the next course of action. This is also the most difficult task you will have in the event of a fire, so let's take a moment to discuss fire drills. All horse handlers should be completely familiar with the barn layout and should practice walking from each stall to the nearest exit. All stalls should be assigned a first exit and an alternate exit so everyone will know exactly which door to use, or in the case the first exit is blocked, will know the alternate door to use. During a drill try walking to the outside with your eyes closed so that if you must evacuate through smoke, you won't be totally disoriented by operating in a state of partial to complete blindness.
Horses must be led out in case of fire or, confused, will attempt to return to their stalls. Beside each stall door hang the occupant's halter with a leadrope snapped to it; the middle of a fire is no time to be hunting for equipment. The old movie scenes where the horses were turned loose and ran through the fields and town, were a great deal more romantic than practical. There is no excuse for horses to be running free; in their flight from danger they will hinder fire-fighting operations, possibly cause traffic accidents, and at the least, inflict tremendous damage to landscaping. Ideally, horses should be led some distance away and securely tied. If the horses are turned out loose into a pasture, fasten the gate securely, and make absolutely certain that no animal is left alone. Horses are intensely social animals; a horse left alone will invariably try to re-enter the barn to find out where everyone else is.
What about the horse who won't leave the barn? You have two choices. If you have assistance and other horses have been evacuated, an attempt can be made again to lead the animal. An assistant—taking care to avoid being kicked—can prod from behind while the person at the horse's head exerts firm pressure on the halter to urge him forward. If a horse refuses to move forward, he should be quickly and forcefully turned in a complete circle one or more times, then immediately led forward. The momentary confusion following the circles will often be enough to get a horse moving and keep him moving. In changing directions with a horse, always turn the horse away from yourself so you won't get stepped on. Sometimes a horse that won't move forward can be backed out, but this is one of the last resorts—it just takes too long to get most horses moving backwards. Blindfolding horses—long thought to be the ideal means of getting them out in a fire—may have some value, but don't count on it. Smoke irritation will force their eyes shut anyway.
If the handler can remain somewhat calm it may benefit the horse, but often it is useless in the case of a panicked animal, because the horse, in a natural-threat situation such as fire, may over-ride its training and function on instinct alone. Instinct decrees that a horse flee his enemy, and if that is not possible, he must hide in his own territory. In their natural habitat, horses would have been escaping from prairie fires; should the herd leader determine that the herd could not outrun the fire, the next course of action would be to head for a place of safety, such as crossing a river. Panic in a barn fire comes from not being able to see to flee, and then, from not being permitted to remain in a “safe” place—in this case, the stall.
This brings us to the second choice. If attempts to get a horse to move fail, you must leave him behind. That is, I know, a brutal statement, but if fire conditions worsen and you are unable to safely evacuate the horses still in the barn, either because they have been cut off from safety by the fire, or due to their refusal to leave the stall, you must—and this cannot be stressed enough—you must walk away. Get far enough away from the barn so you can block your ears. Cry. Curse heaven and earth for the tragedy. Rant, rave, or do anything else necessary to express your anguish, but do not go back into the barn! Firefighters have all too often removed the bodies of people who safely escaped a burning building only to re-enter it to look for a pet or personal valuables. Your life is the most valuable treasure you have—don't sacrifice it for a horse.
Your own fire department can assist you with guidance and information. Contact the officer responsible for fire prevention and ask him or her to help you in evaluating your barn's fire safety level. If you belong to a riding club, 4-H Group, or operate a training facility, consider asking your fire prevention officer to speak at your next meeting or clinic. The officer will be glad to do so, and it may be the most profitable equine information you'll ever receive.
Laurie Loveman
Copyright 1984 All Rights Reserved