just wondering what are the sop's in your area regarding the use of scott pack in a brush fire situation. do you take them off the engine or leave them on

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After 28 yrs of wildland fire in all sorts of conditions, there is no need for being in an air pack. If you are in conditions requiring the need to be in an air pack you should question whether or not you should even be there. CO2 posioning is a big hazard and it is avoidable but a 30 minute air pack is not going to do much good when the exposure is beyond that time fram. Better to be safe pull out and rethink the objectives and tactics of what needs to be done.

They should be placed into service when on structure protection at pre set locations so in the event of needing to escape and the need for breathing clean air while escaping they can be used.
Spoken like a true brush fighter.
Being a Volunteer dept, we have limited funds available to us. Our rule of thumb is that if you feel you need one, then wear it, but its not generally recomended. We wear standard Brush Gear, but we don't have the respirators the forestry guys have issued. So we found a way around that. We use our Nomex hoods and goggles along with the helmets. Again, the idea of wildland firefighting is to be as light as possible without sacraficing saftey. Try the nomex hood/goggles and cover you face as much as possible. You'll save some energy on the long run by leaving the airpack on the truck. If you're going into an area that you need an airpack, then there is alot more going on than a brush fire! Stay Safe out there!

John
Can't say I ever wore one in this setting and seriously, as others have mentioned, look at the pros that do this every day. They are not wearing them.
If you need an airpack for a brush fire then count me out....LOL... You must have some of that ethylmythylbadshit burning in there someplace and we best be looking to hazmat for help....Stay safe......Paul
For my department it all depends on the conditions of the fire and smoke. How ever we do have SOG's that say that we should have bunker pants on and boots.
the dept i work for issued hot shields for brush fires and i dont think it is practical to use airpacks because they slow you down and wear you out especially when in a cypress head or thick brush. If you in a situation where the smoke is that thick then you dont need to be in there
My department has a general rule that if you can't see you feet then you should have an air pack on. Like most of the people said, if you need an SCBA then you shouldnt be in that deep in the first place.
Never in 14 years used a pack at a brush fire. Most of the time we're operating from upwind anyway.
Breathing apparatus at a wildfire? No. If it's any sort of fire at all the air won't last long enough to help. If it's a small fire there won't be the smoke. Most importantly - if the smoke is that bad you shouldn't be there! You're downwind of a bad fire? Why? Get the hell out, you're fighting that fire the wrong way...
LEAVE THEN ON.. TOO MUCH TO DRAG WHEN YOU HAVE ACREAS OF FIRE .. SOOOO SAD PART IS SUCK IN ALOT OF SMOKE
dont use them we just weave in and out from point a to point b with rest areas on both sides of the woods---mutual aid is AWESOME.

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