OK, here we go. LOL!
I'll try to cover things as they came up.
First thing to do is turn off the ignition. The second thing to do is call the fire department.
Yeah, yeah I know what else would a fireman say. But really if you care about your truck or garage or house or any exposures close to your truck, call us. If you wait until you've decided you can't beat it yourself, it will probably be to late for us to save it too! Call us, and afterwards if you think you can do so SAFELY, try and put it out yourself. We will NEVER mind being called out on a call. That said, try not to need us during dinner hours or playoffs. (kidding)
If it is a modern vehicle the dangers increase multifold. Car fires are without question some of the most dangerous. Gas charged bumpers, and hatch and hood (yes they exist) struts can and have killed. If it is post collision, air bags that haven't already gone off may, and again can and have killed. Even the burning plastics are very dangerous. If for any reason you find yourself in the position of approaching or fighting a car fire especially a modern vehicle approach from the side or at an angle, not from directly in front or behind the vehicle.
The best extinguisher to use, as mentioned is an ABC. Generally the bigger the better. Our trucks have plenty of room and safety is no area to get cheap on so why not go big? That said like anything in the truck strap it down.
An ABC extinguisher is a dry chemical powder extinguisher that is useful for class A (wood, paper etc.) B (flammable liquids ie. fuel) and C (electrical) fires. And as mentioned make sure it is charged correctly the arrow will be in the green area of the guage, and periodically bang the sides to prevent the powder from caking.
CO2 is not an effective agent to fight most car fires. CO2 extinguishes fires by displacing the oxygen. So if the fire was caused by burning fuel, the CO2 will indeed put out the fire. However shortly thereafter the heat of the engine will reignite the fuel still present. Also painful and dangerous frost bite can occur if, in the excitement you forget to wear gloves.
Electrical fires are really not significant with car fires. The voltage is only significant while the car is running and then not as troubling as the fire itself. Once the ignition is off the fire is now just a class A fire.
Class B fires (flammable liquid fires) in the case of car fires are generally not approached differently than any other source. The fuel volume is generally low as it is coming from a fuel line. And once the ignition has been turned off, using an ABC extinguisher is the best way to go.
To expound on this a little more though
if you are faced with a puddle of fuel on fire this needs to be handled carefully. Stay uphill and upwind of the fire. Stop the source of the fuel spill if possible. If it is a large volume of liquid the best thing to do is prevent the flow of liquid. Circle the fire with sand, kitty litter, etc. Pointing a compressed air extinguisher at the fire can push or worse splatter the flaming liquid all over spreading the fire, so extreme caution must be exercised. The better bet would be to shovel sand or kitty litter on to the fire or better yet, stand back and wait for it to burn out.
Ok well I think that covers everything. I can't stress this enough though. Fire is WICKED dangerous. It spreads far quicker than you expect and consumes everything. Nothing is more devastating than the loss of home, memories or god forbid worse. Call the fire department!
