Corporate courses...
Well there have been a few good ones, the defensive driver courses which involved a hire car and an ex police driving instructor was fun, the short anti-incursion training session in camp by the ex SAS security chief, but the best was while working in an office on the same location as a chemicals site. This meant we had our own fire station. I hang my head in shame for never having managed to get a go (or steal the keys) of the fire engine. However I did get to do the fire extinguisher course :)

Water - pretty cool against propane burner, Powder - to create an instant winter wonderland, Foam - boring slow petrol fire but the best was the CO2 extinguisher to put out a vat of petrol with propane bubbling through it, this was like being an F1 Marshal after one of those nasty incidents in the pits.

So if you are ever offered the chance to do a fire extinguisher course run by professionals jump at it and if its not on the training list, suggest it to your HSE manager. I mean, all that photocopy paper stacked in the corner near Dave from accounts wearing too much hair gel is a disaster waiting for a fire extinguisher hero.

Advice to students - if you have to set off a fire extinguisher, the water one is pathetic, always grab CO2 and never set off the powder one within 100m of your room.
My work here is done :)
( b3tz, Fri 16 Mar 2012, 11:38, 4 replies)

Yeah
I've done the 'actually using a fire extinguisher to put stuff out' training course run by an onsite fire team a few times. I got to set off a powder extinguisher indoors just to see how much mess it made and why they were putting halon systems in various buildings.

Heartily recommended.
( Afinkawan Yes I can hear you Clem Fandango, Fri 16 Mar 2012, 12:03, closed)

No halon anymore though
which is a pity as it was very good.

Forgot to say this was only in the UK.
( M3rx likes the Asian ladies, Fri 16 Mar 2012, 12:35, closed)

foam is good in conjunction with CO2
the CO2 to put it out, and the foam to stop it relighting.
( M3rx likes the Asian ladies, Fri 16 Mar 2012, 12:37, closed)

Working in a department store
was the only time the fire safety training included any practical work (trying to put out a burning bin with a variety of extinguishers).
I learnt 2 things:
1) if there's a fire, sound the alarm and get out; the odds on putting it out for yourself are slim to none
2) STOP PLAYING WITH THE CO2 EXTINGUISHERS! Which was a shame, as chasing each other around the loading bay was great fun.

At one store, there was a fire in the break room, which one of the managers put out with an extinguisher. Rather than lauded as a hero, he was loudly rebuked for not setting off the alarm, and thus endangering all the customers and members of staff. How we laughed.
( monster munch person, man, woman... camera... TV?, Fri 16 Mar 2012, 14:32, closed)