Firefighter Glossary

20 Glossary about fire safety terms

My glossary is about fire safety, because in my future job I'm going to be a firefighter. This glossary can be useful to other people in this job because it uses terms that indicate specific situations or what to do in in case of an emergency.

Backdraft
When heat and heavy smoke accumulate sparks and cause a rapid combustion.
Class A fire
A fire involving wood, paper and other natural elements.
Class B fire
A fire involving hydrocarbons.
Collapse zone.
An area around a building that would contain debris.
Cross lay
Arrangement of hose on a pumper such that it can be quickly unloaded from either side of the apparatus; often pre-connected to a pump outlet and equipped with a suitable nozzle.
Direct attack
A fire attack were hoses are inside the building.
Electrical fire
A fire that started because of electricity.
Exterior attack
Stopping the fire without going inside the building.
Extrication
Removal of trapped victims.
Fire hazard
A material or a structure that is likely to go on fire when expose to heat.
Fire wall
A structure made to delay fire spread.
Foam-extinguishing
An agent formed by mixing foam, water and air.
Hypoxia
A deficiency in oxygen.
Kendrick extraction device
A tool use in vehicle extraction to remove victims.
Master stream
A nozzle capable of throwing large amount of water.
oxygen tank
A storage vessel for oxygen.
Plug
A term use to define a fire hydrant.
Siren
A signal that make a loud sound to alert people.
Stretcher
A board made to carry injured people.
Vital signs
Measures of various statistics that determine if a person is alive.