By Mary Owen
The Stayton Fire District recently received a new fire attack device with potential to save property and lives.
“We received the device in May of this year, trained our personnel, and placed it into service on our command vehicle June 1,” Asst. Chief Jay Alley said.
The advanced technology of the ARA Safety Pro, called a fire interrupter, allows first responders to buy time and help protect residents from the loss of home and property and the destruction of irreplaceable personal effects from fire and water damage, Alley said.
“It can be used to buy time and even extinguish a fire that may threaten life before fire crews arrive to perform a life-saving rescue,” he added.
According to Alley, staffing for response is always a concern for any agency.
“And these devices can assist with, but not totally replace, the human firefighter,” he said. “This technology is not new. It basically works like a fire extinguisher, once it has been activated.”
Incident commanders, who usually arrive to the scene before the fire engines, will be able to quickly and safely deploy the red canister that puts the majority of the fire out, often before crews even arrive, Alley said.
The device, which looks like a flattened fire extinguisher, is thrown into the burning building. A non-toxic fire extinguishing chemical is activated that rapidly puts the fire out, buying firefighters time to get to victims and eliminating part of the danger of a working fire, Alley said.
“This device, in the proper application and activation, will assist firefighters in their efforts to save property,” he said. “The district is excited about having the device and using it for the first time.”
Properly deployed, the ARA Safety Pro interrupts flame and lowers temperature rapidly, making an interior attack safer, according to the manufacturer.
District officials say these extinguishers have been proven to help firefighters and save millions of dollars in property damage. The device will be on the district command vehicle, which is staffed every day of the year with career and volunteer staff, Alley said.
“The command unit doesn’t carry any water or firefighting equipment,” he said. “The purpose of this unit is to allow an individual to manage the incident, not engage in suppression. Typically this unit is first to arrive. It can be several minutes before a fire truck. If the fire is small enough, it could extinguish the fire, or if the fire is large, it can slow down the fire spread and buy time until a truck arrives.”
