• Ventilate your engine compartment after
every fueling until you are sure there are
no dangerous vapors. Use your nose to
sniff for vapors.
• If your boat is equipped with a bilge
blower, run it for at least 4 minutes until
the bilge is clear of fumes. Sniff the blower
exhaust.
Starting engines when there are gasoline
vapors in the bilge causes most fi res.
This type of fi re starts with an explosion
and spreads rapidly.
Diesel fuel will burn as fast as gasoline
when ignited. The only difference is that
the temperature at which the diesel fumes
ignite is higher.
Keep more than the required number
and size of approved fi re extinguishers
readily accessible. Mount them properly
where you can get at them quickly and easily.
Have them checked annually to ensure
they are fully charged and in working order.
Plan ahead. Know what you will do to
combat fi re in any section of your boat.
Responding to a Fire
Your fi rst considerations must be persons
on board. Since there is so much fl ammable
material on a boat, your fi rst thought
should be the safety of the passengers and
crew. If the fi re is near engines and fuel,
you should consider getting off the boat
with PFDs as soon as possible.
Follow these steps if fi re breaks out
while underway.
• Immediately notify the crew. Tell them
the location of the fi re. Be sure they are
wearing life jackets. Instruct them to
move to the unaffected portion of the
boat, usually toward the wind.
• I f you still have power, try to turn the
boat to prevent the wind from blowing
the fi re into the occupied quarters.
• Immediately place a Mayday call to the
Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16 or using
Digital Selective Calling (DSC). You can
always notify the Coast Guard later if a
Mayday situation no longer exists.
• Turn off all fuel supplies: engine, galley
stove, heaters. Disconnect all sources of
electrical power.
• Find the source of the fi re and try to put
it out with your fi re extinguishers. Be sure
that you have a path of retreat. Choose the
correct fi re extinguisher. You can make a
fi re worse by using the wrong type of extinguisher.
Know in advance how to use your
fi re extinguishers; do not try to read the
label when the fi re is in progress. Point an
extinguisher at the base of a fi re. Use short
bursts and sweep it from side to side until
you use its entire contents (Figure 11-4).
• Remember P.A.S.S. (see Figure 11-4, top)
• If there is the slightest doubt about whether
you can put out the fi re, don’t even try.
116 Chapter Three
Table 11-1. Fire Prevention
Fire Prevention
Handle fuel properly
Inspect the bilge
Check the fuel system
Inspect the wiring
Use only marine parts
Cook in stable conditions
Use caution in storing charcoal
Responding to Fire
First priority—people!
Get people upwind of fi re
Issue distress call
Turn off fuel & power
Locate source of fi re
Access fi re extinguishers
Evacuate boat
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