SOUTHWEST ASIA -- Recently, the fire department responded to a 9-1-1 call in Coalition Compound living facilities, but unlike many of the calls they receive, it wasn't a false alarm; a device had begun smoking and would have eventually caught fire.
The culprit was a transformer, which overloaded because it had been plugged into a surge protector instead of being plugged directly into the wall. Fortunately, the incident occurred early in the morning when both residents were home and could call the fire department.
"Daisy chaining" items that draw a large amount of power, like transformers, through surge protectors is one of several things fire inspectors look for when they do inspections.
"The main things we look at during inspections are the smoke detectors, transformers, surge protectors, air conditioning units and the general cleanliness of the billets," said Tech. Sgt. James Shultz, 379th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron lead fire inspector. "The billets in CC aren't made of the best material, so the walls aren't going to hold much. By the time we get there and get set up, we may lose three or four rooms."
Fortunately, there hasn't been a major fire in the living areas here for several years, and to keep it that way, the fire department does no-notice inspections on all billeting rooms.
"We've seen people do a lot of different things they shouldn't with surge protectors," Sergeant Shultz said. "People have connected multiple surge protectors together and tried to be slick and hide it by running the wires behind their beds and refrigerators. But any time we find surge protectors daisy chained, we confiscate all of them."
Other reasons surge protectors are confiscated include when they are run under a rug, or when something that draws a large amount of power, like television, refrigerator, microwave or a coffee pot, is plugged into it rather than directly into the wall.
One of the other big issues the inspectors have found recently are people tampering with smoke detectors.
"If your smoke detector activates, don't try to reset it, fix it yourself or pull it off the wall," said Sergeant Shultz. "Just exit the area wait for the fire department to assist in the situation. Basically don't mess with the detectors outside of cleaning them."
As one of the largest and most used appliances in the dormitories, air conditioners are also a major concern for the fire department.
Several years ago, there was an air conditioner which caught on fire because residents didn't clean the filter, causing too much dust to build up inside, Sergeant Shultz said. They most likely also left it running at the highest setting, both of which allowed it to catch fire, destroying the unit and the wall it was mounted on.
Sergeant Shultz said it's important to pay attention to what people are doing in the dormitories because even if they are doing the right thing, all their personal belongings could go up in smoke because someone else is doing something unsafe.
"In the time it takes us to get from the fire station to the billet that's caught on fire, a lot of damage could be done," he said. "So everyone needs to pay attention because it only takes one person not doing the right thing to start a fire that could make everyone lose all their belongings."
Fire prevention tips
DON'T ...
-- Plug multiple surge protectors into one another
-- Run electrical cords under the carpet
-- Plug appliances that draw large amounts of power into surge protectors. Examples are televisions, refrigerators and coffee makers.
-- Tamper with smoke detectors
-- Prop doors open
-- Use anything to cover up power outlets
-- Block any fire exits
-- Hang up Christmas-tree lights
DO ...
-- Clean air-conditioning filters on a weekly basis
-- Turn the air conditioner off when no one is going to be in the room
-- Clean smoke detectors by running a vacuum cleaner hose with a brush extension around the detector.
-- Leave the building when the fire alarm sounds, even if no smoke can be seen or smelled
-- Call 9-1-1 if a fire alarm goes off
For more information, call the fire department at 437-7253.