05/07/2025
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This picture has been making the rounds on Facebook this week. So I am reposting Duane Russell’s article on horses and fire extinguishers. Please take the time to read and understand the different types of extinguishers and where you should or shouldn't use them.
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Maybe we take it for granted, maybe we just don’t think it will ever happen to us, but the fact is that our truck and horse trailers carry flammable liquids, that under the right conditions, can burn your entire truck and trailer down in just minutes!
If we consider the sources of these flammable items we can to some extent, try to minimize the loss of our equipment and protect our horses. But only if you understand what to do and act quickly!
Before we get into specific types of fires that can occur on your truck and horse trailer let’s do a quick review of the common fire extinguisher types and which fires they are suitable to be utilized upon.
“A” – Type A – Hay, wood, paper, fabrics, plastics, rubber - (Never use Water on oil, gas or grease)
“B” – Type B – Flammable liquids, gasoline, diesel, grease
“C” – Type C – Electrically charged sources such as fuse panels, appliances, circuit breakers
A type “A” extinguisher will be typically water based, but foam and dry chemical are also options. Type “B” extinguishers can utilize foam, CO2 gas or dry chemical. Type C extinguishers are either C02 gas or dry chemical. (Aka Halon gas was used in computer rooms and was replaced by C02 gas). C02 is ideal for electronics.
When dealing with a fire on a truck and horse trailer you will need to understand this because you will require different types of extinguishers at different locations on your rig. Most of you will only need to carry a Type “ABC” Dry Chemical extinguisher for your vehicles and a type “A” WATER based in the horse compartment. Got it? Ok . . . let's get into the minutia.
Engine Fires!
Despite the automotive companies’ best efforts, their vehicles do sometimes catch on fire. Whenever you are pumping fuel under pressure to an engine there is always the possibility of a leak occurring and a subsequent fire engulfing the engine. An engine fire is a full-blown emergency and you have to act fast! My suggestion is to immediately stop on the pavement wherever you are and use a fire extinguisher to put out the flames. The last thing you want to do is pull to the shoulder and set the grass on fire around you.
If you have someone with you, work together, while one is trying to put out the fire the other person should be unloading the horses. If you are alone you need to make a judgement call as to whether you think you have time to attempt to put out the fire and save your rig or go straight for the horses and let it burn. This is a decision only you can make.
Just keep in mind with an engine fire there is a good chance as the fire burns through the electrical components, the engine will stop running. If you bail out and try to put the jacks down on your trailer and then try to pull the truck away you may not have time before the engine quits. It all depends on how quickly you recognize the situation.
My personal priority is to try to extinguish the flames as quickly as possible and keep it from spreading from the truck to the trailer. If I am unable to open the hood and or my extinguisher fails to put out the fire, then the decision is easy. I am on my way to my horses!
In an engine fire you have a very small window to get the fire out. One word of caution on opening the hood as it will likely be hot and by opening the hood you add more air to the fire. Don’t be surprised if the flames jump up or right towards you. The best option in this situation is to keep as large a Class “ABC” Fire Extinguisher behind the truck seat along with a set of leather gloves. The ABC class of fire extinguisher utilizes a dry chemical called monoammonium phosphate. This chemical adheres to the fuel source and thus prevents it from gaining the oxygen needed to continue burning.
These ABC fire extinguishers are very effective on fuel-based fires. The only downside is the vehicle sized extinguishers only last a short time before they fully dispensed. So be sure to get as large an extinguisher size as you can store in your tow vehicle. Mine sits in a storage tray behind the rear seat of my crew cab.
LQ Trailer Related Fires
If you are running a living quarters trailer, then you likely have two propane tanks located under the gooseneck structure. These tanks are exposed and in the event of a vehicle fire that engulfs the tow vehicle and spreads to the trailer these tanks will be in the direct path of the fire. Given enough heat and a long enough burn time and these tanks will explode. If you made the decision to grab the horses and “Let it Burn”, then take the horses and get as far away from the rig as possible. When the fire department arrives, be sure to tell them there are propane tanks on the trailer and where they are located. If you have a generator, inform the fire department where the fuel tank is located and the fuel type (Gasoline, Diesel, Propane).
Kitchen Fires
Kitchen fires can be very serious, especially if there is only one way out of your living quarters and the fire is between you and the exit. Stop and think about this for a moment! Everything in an LQ trailer is flammable! Curtains, shades, cabinetry, tables, bedding, towels, clothes. It’s all a huge source of fuel for a fire! With a virtually unlimited fuel source, an LQ fire usually results in complete loss of the trailer.
Is there a way to prevent losing your trailer? Absolutely! Here are a couple of things you should know. One, ALWAYS have a Fire Blanket and a type “ABC” fire extinguisher in the LQ Trailer, preferably near the kitchen. If a grease fire flames up use the fire banket to put the fire out. If the flames catch the blinds or cabinets on fire, you should use your “ABC” extinguisher to put out the fire and minimize any damage / repairs. The reason you would use and ABC extinguisher is the likelihood of a multi-fuel source. Aka hitting a grease fire with water (Class A) would spread the fire. A type A or B extinguisher might also act as a conduit for shock if you spray the kitchen with an active microwave or electrical outlet. So ALWAYS use a type “ABC” extinguisher in a kitchen fire. The emphasis on the C portion of the rating if anything electrical is involved.
My first line of defense would always be to use the fire blanket first and then the extinguisher. Barring that this fails to fully extinguish the fire in the kitchen, my next step is turn off the propane tanks. Turning off the propane tanks will eliminate the pressure from the tanks and stalls the feeding of the propane to the fire. If your horses are safely away from the trailer and you cannot stop the fire, then you will have to use your best judgement if you have time to remove the propane tanks carry them away from the trailer. This will protect Fire and EMS personnel arriving on scene from having to worry about exploding tanks.
Electrical Fires
Living Quarters trailers are a marvel of both AC and DC engineering. Many have 30 or even 50 AMP external shore cords as well as DC battery banks to provide power when not plugged in. These two different power systems are tied into a fused control panel in the LQ to protect the appliances in the trailer. Electrical fires are fairly rare, but they can occur. Again, what type of extinguisher do we use for an electrical fire? . . . . . . . Type “ABC” so we don’t get electrocuted!
Brake Fires
Brake fires are serious issue in that the fire is located immediately under your horses’ feet and if they burn through the fender well your horses are in IMMEDIATE danger! Rubber tires, pour-in flooring and matted walls are the perfect source of fuel and when they burn, they can produce toxic gases. Because brakes have a multi-fuel source (Brake Lining, Rubber Tires, Hydraulic Fluid and or Electrical Brake magnets we again use a LARGE Type “ABC” extinguisher. The reason I say LARGE is because you could very well be fighting fire on both sides of the axles.
Tire Fires
Tire fires are difficult to extinguish. Partly because of the compounds used and partly due to the fact that a tire would have to reach a temperature of approximately 750 degrees for several minutes before they would burn freely. A burning tire is actually a very serious situation as the thick black smoke that comes off them contain some very dangerous chemicals including carbon monoxide, Sulphur dioxide and even cyanide.
Worse if you are successful at extinguishing the fire and then attempt to drive to a nearby tire place you easily run the risk of the tires reigniting. The reason for this is it takes times sometimes as much as 3 days for tires to fully cool down after reaching fire ignition temperatures. If you experience a tire fire, be very careful driving your rig, especially with horses inside. Leave them with someone if you can. Again, a type “ABC” dry chemical extinguisher is suitable for tire fires.
Generator Fires
Generators on living quarters rigs are usually located in two places. A common installation location on older trailers was to install the generator in the rear manger door. This brought with it a lot of problems. The feed pan was hot whenever the generator was in use and the exhaust found its way into the horse compartment. Today most generators are roof mounted. Both are bad situations at best. You have electrical current, fuel and combustion occurring all in the same place, and it’s between you and your horses. Worse it requires a type “ABC” type extinguisher to put out the flames. The chemicals used in these extinguishers are the last thing I would want coming into to contact with my horses’ eyes, lungs and skin. In this case I would probably reverse my thinking and get the horses out and then fight the fire.
Hay Fire
Any type of fire that breaks out in your hay, be it in a feed manger, hay bag, hay rack or hay pod should be extinguished with a type "A" water-based fire extinguisher. If you were to use an "ABC" dry chemical extinguisher you would contaminate all of the hay with chemical that renders you hay unsafe to feed to your horses. With a water-based extinguisher you can feed any hay that you saved from the fire.
Horse Compartment Fires
Let me first say GOD forbid a horse compartment fire ever happens to you!
This is where my program changes. I specifically carry a 2.5 Gallon WATER based pressurized fire extinguisher in the rear tack of my horse trailer. The take away here is that I am using a WATER based fire extinguisher. The last thing you want to do is spray a horse with an ABC dry chemical extinguisher. The chemical in these extinguisher’s should never be sprayed into the eyes of a horse or on burned skin. You will only complicate the extraction of your horses if they can’t see and make recovery painful as they have to scrub the chemical out of their burns. Correspondingly if burning fuel has leaked from the generator on the roof into the horse compartment do not EVER hit it with a WATER extinguisher. This will quickly spread the fire. Use and ABC extinguisher on any fuel sources first and then protect your horses with the water extinguisher.
Running into a burning trailer takes a lot of courage, but there isn’t a horse person alive that wouldn’t do so to get their horses out. So, before you do, consider what you are about to encounter. As you enter the trailer you may very catch on fire yourself. By using the WATER based extinguisher to spray a small amount of water on your hair, face and clothes you reduce the risk of catching fire and increase the amount of time you can spend inside under highly adverse conditions. Wrap yourself in the Kitchen Fire Blanket if time allows. Keep in mind that nylon clothing and tennis shoes will easily melt at even at low temperatures. When they do, they will have to be scraped or cut off your skin. Wet cotton shirts, jeans and leather riding boots are your best bet short of wearing a fire suit.
I use an Amerex 2.5-gallon water-based extinguisher for this purpose. This oversized metal extinguisher is loaded with clean water and pressurized using a standard tire inflation fitting. If you don’t have a compressor to fill one you can always stop at a gas station. Mine is mounted in the rear tack for quick access to horse compartment. Another good location would be inside the manager storage area if you have this type of trailer.
This subject is not an easy subject to write about. Nobody wants to lose a rig or their horses and every situation is different. You will have to exercise your best judgment when the time comes. If you took anything away from this article, I hope that it motivates you to carry the right kind of fire extinguisher in the right places on your rig. I also pray that you NEVER need to use them. If you do . . always remember to point the extinguisher at the base of the flames and fan to the left and right!
Be safe out there!
(Dwayne Russell)
