Lorry fires

[kurnal]

Hi All
I have been asked to put together a training course on the safe use of fire extinguishers for lorry drivers employed by a haulage firm down the road. One of their lorries caught fire and the driver had never had any training . Of course they are out on the road most of the time with a DP extinguisher in the cab. Its general haulage using diesel only LGVs - curtain sided.

Obviously the training will be limited in scope  (take steps - big ones) and pretty straightforward.
Key messages will be Personal safety, then Public safety and then perhaps seeing if you can stop a small fire becoming a big fire but dont take any risks.

I shall take the LPG rig with me but I thought I would take the time to refresh myself on the issues in fire fighting and LGVs- as I recall there were explosion risks associated with brake actuators, gas struts and some flouro chemicals used for gaskets that were toxic by skin absorption in the past. Many vehicles now run on a mix of diesel and LPG but they dont have any of those.

I shall cover the risks of sleeping in cabs and the risks of heaters, improvised wiring for chargers and tvs etc and the need for Hi viz and care to avoid the risk of being knocked down.

Have I missed anything? Or is there anything new?

[John Webb]

Bearing in mind the small volume of a lorry cab compared to a small domestic bedroom, is there any benefit to be obtained in having a domestic SD in the lorry cab to awaken the occupant if something goes wrong?

[nearlythere]

Hi All
I have been asked to put together a training course on the safe use of fire extinguishers for lorry drivers employed by a haulage firm down the road. One of their lorries caught fire and the driver had never had any training . Of course they are out on the road most of the time with a DP extinguisher in the cab. Its general haulage using diesel only LGVs - curtain sided.

Obviously the training will be limited in scope  (take steps - big ones) and pretty straightforward.
Key messages will be Personal safety, then Public safety and then perhaps seeing if you can stop a small fire becoming a big fire but dont take any risks.

I shall take the LPG rig with me but I thought I would take the time to refresh myself on the issues in fire fighting and LGVs- as I recall there were explosion risks associated with brake actuators, gas struts and some flouro chemicals used for gaskets that were toxic by skin absorption in the past. Many vehicles now run on a mix of diesel and LPG but they dont have any of those.

I shall cover the risks of sleeping in cabs and the risks of heaters, improvised wiring for chargers and tvs etc and the need for Hi viz and care to avoid the risk of being knocked down.

Have I missed anything? Or is there anything new?

I have included vehicle use during working hours in my training where necessary which includes safe pulling up and parking in the event of an outbreak so as to avoid the risk to other road users, pedestrians and property.
Also the risk of gases from fires involving plastics and foams usually in the passenger areas.
Staying out of smoke.
The removal, if safe to do so, of containers or cylinders of highly flammable substances.

[kurnal]

Good points- thanks both.

[Martin]

http://www.hse.gov.uk/mvr/priorities/fluoroelastomers.htm

No risk from Fluoroelastomers

Carriage of Goods Regulations may apply

http://www.hse.gov.uk/cdg/introduction.html

[Martin]

http://www.hse.gov.uk/cdg/index.htm

Sorry typo. in previous dangerous goods link

[SamFIRT]

Kurnal.

The dangers could be from the trailer and not the tractor unit.

Many lorry drivers park up in quiet roads or industrial estates. There they can then become targets of unwarranted attention. Most drivers’ doing this will leave their load doors open to show they are not carrying anything of high value, (if they are not of course).

At a recent incident I attended the driver was awakened by a passing well-wisher and the fact his trailer was alight made known to him. His first action was to de-couple and move his tractor unit up the road. This entailed lowering the trailer props before de-coupling the umbilical. All of which takes time. Advice could be woven around this for your clients.

The police were interested due to the reports ( pun…sorry) of aloud explosion followed by smaller ones.  I found these were caused by both the complete set of six tyres bursting along with the air reservoir under the trailer.

There are not many possible causes of fires in LGV road trailers. Electrics ( if coupled up), overheated bearings, brakes or tyres (especially if underinflated); or deliberate ignition, usually using an accelerant. Of course the tractor unit has all the possibilities of any vehicle, along with the occupant and all the associated human factors of that person(s).

[kurnal]

Thanks to all- all good stuff.
Another thing I am interested in is why do tyres explode so violently sometimes and without apparent warning? It must surely be as a result of a flammable mixture of gases/ vapours building up within the tyre? I was following one once on the motorway - nothing looked particularly untoward but I felt the force of the blast in my car. Is there any info on this?

[SamFIRT]

Don’t forget there are three types of explosion, mechanical, chemical and nuclear. It’s not the last and don’t forget for it to be the second there has to be the correct mix of fuel to oxygen and an ignition source; or the fuel reaching its auto ignition temperature.

Tyre blowouts are usually mechanical explosions. Those experienced on the move are usually caused by either overheating, usually caused by under-inflation, or tyre damage, (usually to the tyre wall) or both. Think about it; the person that runs on underinflated tyres is probably the person that clips curbs and thinks nothing of it. The blowout is usually just a mechanical explosion similar to the overheating of any pressure vessel.

However, an under-inflated tyre can heat to the point of smoulder. This can occur to the inside of the tyre as there is a ready supply of oxygen inside (especially for tubeless tyres as the tube would burst early in the process). This can lead to degradation of the tyre wall from the inside leading to an explosive transition to flame when the tyre wall bursts. This can occur on the move or some while after the vehicle has parked up.

Morel of the story…. run your vehicle tyres on the correct tyre pressures and check their condition.