Stove fire, live generator wire and an unresponsive man in a wedding hall
At a wedding function in a community hall in Dhanbad, a kerosene pressure stove is knocked over near the cooking area and burning kerosene spreads across the floor. A woman's synthetic saree catches fire at the hem. A young man reaching to pull her away touches an exposed live wire running from a petrol generator to the lighting, and his hand clamps onto the wire; he is thrown down and then lies still, not responding and not visibly breathing. A second man runs for a bucket of water to throw on the stove. Roughly 200 guests start pushing towards a single 1.5-metre-wide exit. Two constables on bandobast duty are the first responders, about 40 seconds away, and the nearest ambulance is 18 minutes out. They have their lathis, a torch, a first-aid box with gauze and a burn sheet, and a mobile phone.
1. Set out the order in which the two constables should act in the first three minutes, and justify the priority.
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1. Stop the exits turning into a crush (first 30 seconds). 200 people at one 1.5 m exit is the biggest immediate killer in the room, ahead of the fire itself. One constable takes the exit, stops the push, opens a second route if a door or window can be cleared, and sends people out in a single file, shouting clear instructions.
2. Kill the electricity (30–60 seconds). The second constable goes to the generator, not to the man on the wire, and switches it off or trips it. Only then is the wire safe to move.
3. Smother the stove fire (60–90 seconds). Stop the man with the water bucket - physically if needed. Use the burn sheet, a wet blanket, sand, or a dry-powder extinguisher on the kerosene, and cut off the fuel by righting or closing the stove only if it is safe to touch.
4. The burnt woman. Roll her on the floor or wrap her in the burn sheet to starve the flames of air; do not let anyone pull charred cloth off the wound. Cool with clean running water if available.
5. The man on the wire, once the supply is off. Check response and breathing, start chest compressions if he is not breathing normally, and send for 108.
Why this order. Electricity and crowd movement are hazards that can create more casualties in the next 30 seconds; a burning saree is being dealt with by the victim's own movement and the sheet; the electrocuted man needs the current stopped before any touch, and CPR after.
2. Explain the science behind why water must not be thrown on the burning kerosene, and state what should be used instead.
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Density. Kerosene has a density of roughly 0.8 g per cubic centimetre, less than water at 1.0. Kerosene therefore floats.
What water does. Water hitting burning kerosene sinks below the fuel layer, flashes to steam at about 100 degrees Celsius, and expands roughly 1,600 times in volume. That expansion throws burning fuel outward and upward in a spray, so a small fire becomes a spreading fire and the person throwing the water is scalded by steam. Water also spreads the pool of fuel across the floor rather than confining it.
Classification. Kerosene is a Class B flammable liquid fire; water is a Class A agent. The agent and the fuel class must match.
Correct measures.
- Smothering: a fire blanket, a wet cloth, a heavy carpet or sand cuts off oxygen.
- Dry chemical powder or CO2 extinguisher: smothers and, for CO2, displaces oxygen without leaving residue.
- Foam for a large pool of flammable liquid.
- Remove nearby fuel and clothing so the fire has nothing to spread into. Clinical point. After flames are out, cool the burn with clean running water at room temperature for about twenty minutes, cover loosely with a clean non-fluffy cloth, and never apply ice, toothpaste, oil, ash or turmeric; these worsen tissue damage and complicate the hospital's assessment. Constables should note the time of the burn and the extent, which determines referral urgency.
3. Explain why the young man could not let go of the wire, and describe the correct sequence for reviving him.
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Why he could not let go. Domestic and generator supply is alternating current at 50 Hz. In that frequency range the current causes sustained tetanic contraction of muscle: the flexor muscles of the hand and forearm are stronger than the extensors, so the hand clenches tighter around the conductor instead of being thrown off. The victim is held by his own grip. Current passing through the body also causes ventricular fibrillation and respiratory arrest, and the alternating current is more dangerous than direct current of the same magnitude for this reason.
Sequence.
- Do not touch him. The rescuer becomes the second victim - this is the classic double death in such incidents.
- Switch off the generator or the supply at the source; if that is impossible, push him clear using a dry wooden pole, dry bamboo, or a dry rope, standing on dry ground or a rubber mat.
- Once free, check response and breathing for no more than ten seconds.
- If not breathing normally, start chest compressions: centre of the chest, heel of the hand, 5 to 6 cm deep, at 100 to 120 compressions a minute, with two rescue breaths after every 30 compressions if trained; continue without stopping until he breathes or help arrives.
- Send for 108 immediately and record the time compressions started; the ambulance is 18 minutes out, so a trained bystander must keep going.
- Look for entry and exit burn marks (hand and foot) and get him to hospital even if he revives, because heart rhythm disturbances can appear hours later. Note in the case diary: who switched off the supply, at what time, and who gave first aid.