Fighting fire with polymers

Activity: Visiting Your Local Firehouse

Have your teacher or parents arrange a visit to your local firehouse. (Do you know where your local firehouse is? If not, you should find out!!)

Before you go, be sure to read the pages in our firehouse so that you have some background information about the equipment that firefighters use.

Possible questions to ask on your visit:

• What training is required to be a firefighter? How long does the training take?
• What are the firefighter's clothes made from? Is all the clothing (gloves, pants, etc.) made from the same material?
• Are there types of clothing that the firefighters cannot wear?
• Is there special clothing for responding to chemical fires? Chemical spills?
• How long does it take the firefighter to get dressed?
• Where do you get the water to fight a fire?
• Is water the only thing used to fight fires?
• What are some of the common causes of fire?
• How do you determine the cause of a fire?
• How do you determine if it's safe to enter a burning building?
• How do you know when a fire is "out"?
• How is a fire reported? How long does it take for the fire department to respond?

• Does your local fire department have a web page? If so, what type of information does it contain?
• Will your local fire department arrange a demonstration, or a training session, on using fire extinguishers?
• Do a web search to find the most common causes of fire in the United States.
• Do a web search to find additional information about fire prevention.