Car fires with magnesium

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Permalink Reply by Wayne on March 6, 2009 at 4:57pm

Mike Puchol said:

My take on this is that using a class D agent on a vehicle fire where magnesium has already been identified as part of the combustion is a waste. By this time, the vehicle is practically always beyond salvage, thus operations should concentrate on protecting exposures and crew safety. PPE and distance, plus copious water as Todd has mentioned. I just saw the price of a 30lb. class D extinguisher at $688! Personally, I would save it for fires where you must put out the metal. The YouTube video that shows the results of applying water to such fire is quite illustrative for those who haven't seen it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUmqhIVW3cM

Just when I thought we have beaten this one to a pulp... Here's some training we did several years ago showing trying to use water to put it out. These were drums quarter full with mag flash. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRd7TmHm6dM Water doesn't work that good and should be a last resort to protect property or life, period.

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Permalink Reply by Mike Puchol on March 6, 2009 at 6:38pm

I mentioned vehicle fires only, in the video you post (thanks for sharing!) it's obvious that water is not effective, but it is also a different scenario, with a much larger amount of magnesium - in which case the use of dry agents is justified. To clarify the tactics I suggested earlier, if the reaction to water gets really violent, you can just remove the stream, concentrate on exposures and let it burn.

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Permalink Reply by Wayne on March 6, 2009 at 7:54pm

Mike Puchol said:

I mentioned vehicle fires only, in the video you post (thanks for sharing!) it's obvious that water is not effective, but it is also a different scenario, with a much larger amount of magnesium - in which case the use of dry agents is justified. To clarify the tactics I suggested earlier, if the reaction to water gets really violent, you can just remove the stream, concentrate on exposures and let it burn.

Absolutely now lets move on to another topic. Ho hum....

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Permalink Reply by Vincent Gatti on March 7, 2009 at 1:40pm

Can't resist a war story then I promise to leave this alone....

At a structure fire a couple years ago, the 1st team in got that type of a reaction after opening the line in the living room. Turns out the owner repaired small engines inside the house (we knew he did it outside)! There were magnesium engine blocks in the living room and solvents in the kitchen cupboards. Honestly never know what you'll find!

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Permalink Reply by 1c6edcuuajbwo on September 12, 2012 at 4:12pm

looking for auto other than VW that had magnesium in engine compartment. I believe it was American made vehicle.

smaller car, discontinued production mid to late 60s

Recall dangerous reaction when water applied.

Often used as a teaching tool in the field with probationary FFers.

keep back and use copious water in addition to regular safety

boots up-gloves-eye shields down-keep your cool

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Permalink Reply by Elliot Belote on October 9, 2012 at 10:25pm

Volvos and VW definately has alot of magnesium. Alot of cars have magnesium in the steering column, as well as in the driver foot area / fire wall....from what i've learned, they key is to definately take advantage of the stream and use foam

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Permalink Reply by Tony Tricarico on October 10, 2012 at 4:43pm

Hey guys;

Right now the best product on the market for a class "D" fire is FireIce.  It does not evaporate so the stream is penetrating to the burning material and full extinguishment is a ground ball.  You will get the initial flash but the FireIce will cool the burning metal quickly and bring it below it's ignition temp.  With a metal burning at over 5000 degrees, it's nice to get this under control so quickly, wether it's a vehicle, shavings in a dumpster or in a manufacturing plant, this stuff will do the job.

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Permalink Reply by 277i13mbpeoj0 on April 29, 2013 at 2:29am

We should be able to recognize burning mag on the inside of a vehicle because the fire will look much brighter than the rest of the car. Extinguish the rest of the car first and flood the burning mag. Too many people will zone in on the mag and not pay attention to what else is happening. If you’re in a parking lot surrounded by other cars or a garage, knock down the rest of the fire and protect the exposures, most of the ones on the driver’s side. Mag engine fires I've been on have usually burned through the hood before we got there and require a whole lot of water. Again, keep your distance; there is no reason to get hurt for a car fire, well if in case some parts get damage through burning so there are any online used parts site are available where we can replace it, I know such a best site http://info.automotix.net/usedautoparts.html , I think it could be helpful for all of us.

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