by Larry Wiggins

Created on: January 30, 2009

Fire is both your friend and your enemy when you camp. A fire provides warmth and is used to cook your food. Friendships are generated and reinforced sitting around the campfire. However, a campfire that is out of control is a danger to not just the campsite but, the fire can destroy vast areas.

What you will do in the event that a fire jumps the fire ring begins before the fire is lit. When considering a fire, the first action is to determine whether the environmental conditions will allow a fire. In extremely dry conditions, fires may be prohibited by governmental agencies. Under no circumstances should a fire be started during a fire ban.

Assuming that a starting a fire is legal, preparation should be made to light the fire. The fire pit or ring should be located so that the wind will not blow ashes and sparks onto tents, tarps or other camping equipment. In campsites with fixed fire pits, it may be necessary to relocate the camping equipment rather than moving the fire. The next step is to remove all burnable material within ten feet of the fire pit. If a large fire is planned, an even larger perimeter is required. The final step of preparation is to place extinguishing materials near the fire pit. These materials could be buckets of water, a fire extinguisher or shovels.

Once lit, the fire should be fully contained within the fire ring. An excessively large fire will only burn wood quickly and a large fire is too hot to socialize around. Wood should be chosen that does not pop and send sparks flying. Generally hardwoods will pop less than softwoods.

The steps to take if the fire escapes the fire ring depend on the size of the fire outside of the ring and the materials involved in the fire. A small fire in grass or leaves near the fire ring should be doused with large quantities of water. The soil should be disturbed to the extent that its composition can be determined. If there is a large amount of organic material in the soil, it should be dug up to determine if this duff is also involved in the fire. If the duff is on fire, the duff should be turned over with a shovel or an improvised implement and the materials should be saturated with water. A perimeter of several feet of saturated duff should be established to prevent further migration of the fire from the original area.

Fabric structures such as tents or tarps will burn very quickly. Additionally, the lightweight nylon used in many modern structures will melt and severely burn anyone who comes in contact with it. The best method of extinguishing one of these structures is by collapsing it as quickly as possible and spraying it with water. Collapsing the structure should only be attempted if it can be done safely. Since the fabrics will burn very quickly, once they are involved in a fire, attention should be paid to other materials nearby where the fire may migrate from the tent. Large amounts of water can prevent the fire from spreading further.

After extinguishing a fire in a campsite, the site should be monitored to ensure that the fire was completely extinguished. Materials should be turned over and any spark or hot spot saturated with water.

Fires that cannot be extinguished completely within a few minutes are serious emergencies. A call for help should be made. Professional firefighters and heavy equipment may be necessary.

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