Skip to content

General Knowledge · Fires

If a driver suspects a smoldering fire inside a closed cargo compartment, what should the driver do?

1.Not open the doors, since the rush of fresh air can feed oxygen to the fire and cause it to flare up, and instead notify emergency servicesCorrect answer
2.Open the doors immediately to let the smoke escape and then assess the damage done to the cargo inside the trailer
3.Use a garden hose of water on any cargo fire at all, whatever the cargo inside that particular trailer is made of
4.Drive on to the nearest terminal before addressing the fire in any way at all along the remainder of the route there

Explanation

A driver who suspects a smoldering fire inside a closed cargo compartment should not open the doors, since the sudden rush of fresh air can feed oxygen to the fire and cause it to flare up, and should instead notify emergency services and let trained firefighters handle it. 49 CFR 383.111(a)(3)(i) names fire extinguishers and diagnosing malfunctions as required knowledge without stating this specific response, so it is standard driver-training content, attributed to the manual. The wrong options each make the situation worse or riskier: opening the doors feeds the fire the oxygen it needs to grow, plain water is not an appropriate response to every cargo fire and can be actively dangerous on some cargo types, and continuing to drive delays getting trained help to a fire that is actively getting worse.

Source: 49 CFR 383.111(a)(3)(i)

Drill Fires questions

Related Fires questions