Personal Protective Equipment

Starting with clothing, the absolute minimum is all-natural fiber clothes, starting with socks and underwear and going to long pants and a long-sleeved shirt that closes around the neck. Cotton and wool do not support combustion well--they will not flash into flame nor will flame spread rapidly from one part to another. Artificial fibers, even if they will not support combustion, will melt, making them stick to flesh and multiplying the effects of burning. They are more difficult to rip off someone whose clothing may be burning.

It is important that clothing act as a thermal insulator also, as the heat radiated by the fire could itself cause burns or make metal fittings so hot that they would cause burns. So don't carry metal, coins or tools in pockets but in external pouches.

You might think that in hot weather it would be better to wear shorts and short-sleeved shirts, but it is far more important to keep as much of the radiant heat of the fire away from your body as you can. This is a case not only of burn protection but also of minimizing water loss and dehydration--think of desert Arabs and their long robes and turbans.

Pictures of injuries suffered by firefighters trapped in the 1996 Calabasas fire dramatically show the advantage of dressing in layers with a long-sleeved cotton t-shirt under the Nomex brush jacket. One firefighter wearing a short-sleeved t-shirt suffered second- and third-degree burns from the glove-line up his arm to the hem of the t-shirt sleeve. From the hem of the shirt upward he had only lighter first- and second-degree burns--no picnic, but far preferable.

Shoes should be all leather, with no plastic or mesh to melt or let in hot air or sparks. The last thing you want is to have burned feet. Being unable to walk can leave you dangerously exposed and difficult to rescue. The shoes should be high cut, preferably boots six inches or more in height, in case you need to move across a recently-burned patch of ground. To firefighters a burned-over patch represents safety, but you'd better have footwear that can take it.

Add cotton neckerchiefs to protect your neck, nose and mouth, and a hat with a brim to cover your whole head. For $5 to $10 you can buy an approved hard hat which, considering all the stuff that will be flying about and falling from trees, seems a wise buy. Finally, add a pair of good goggles ($10-$20) to keep smoke and hot ash out of your eyes, and you're done.

With the possible exception of the shoes/boots, virtually everyone already has such an outfit or could rather easily afford one.

The next step up is a significant one. This involves purchase of a set of outerwear called a brush outfit. These can be had in heavy cotton canvas fabrics treated for fire resistance, or the artificial fiber known as Nomex which is fireproof. The outfit consists of loose-fitting trousers to go over a pair of pants, and a loose jacket. A set will cost from less than $100 for fire resistant cotton, to as much as $300 for the Nomex. They are available from many suppliers by mail order or from a local Los Angeles company. There are many variants-the local company supplies Los Angeles County and City Fire Departments-but any of them will do.

If you are going to spring for Nomex you will certainly want a hard hat. You may also want to spend another $100 or so on a good filter mask to protect your nose, throat and lungs from smoke, soot and hot embers.

All told a reasonable set of PPE as a private individual staying to protect your own home will cost anywhere from perhaps $200 (including good boots) to $500-$600.
 

NOTE WELL: Do not try to use wet cloths or kerchiefs to keep cool or keep smoke out of your lungs. Dr. Radtke, as many other people, advises doing so, but his assumption is that people will not be attempting to deal directly with the fire. A wet kerchief will filter at least some of the smoke particles and pollutants.

However this is unsafe, except at considerable distance from the fire. In the first place, at close range the heat of the fire will suck up moisture almost as fast as you can pour it on. More seriously, if you get too close and a blast of super-heated air catches you, that water can flash to steam almost instantly. Scalding burns are very serious, and such burns about the face or in the airways can be life-threatening.