Essentials of Fire Fighting

Good

I purchased this manual in order to understand structure fires, how they usually start and behave. I wanted to know what the dangers are, and how the fires affect differently built structures. Basically I wanted to know what can be done by a homeowner to prevent fires and what common sense (i.e. safe) steps can be taken by someone living in a rural forested area, with no nearby fire department, that has a structure fire. Since I wasn't looking to become a fire fighter, but rather to understand (and prevent) structure fires, it turned out that this book wasn't quite as useful to me as manuals on wildland firefighting, understandably. But it did provide some useful info, particularly on how dangerous and deceptive structure fire behavior can be, and how toxic the fumes and gases in a structure fire are (eg. it's the CO in the air that can get you, even if you think you're safe and away from flames). And by buying the manual used for less than $5 after shipping, it was a worthwhile purchase.

I had heard many great things about Essentials, and I was not disappointing. It is very easy to read, and explains it very well. This is perhaps why i started to give it 4 stars is how basic it breaks stuff down. For someone with no understanding of pyrolysis, it is 5 stars. Then again, the science of it is what i love. Great for easy reading, easy to follow, not too much technical jargon. Why not, its a great book, and awesome reference for the things the book we use leaves out. 5 stars it is!

I said it before and I say it again these Essential Of Fire Fighting book are among the best fire fighting books I have ever read. Don't hesitate to pick one up as they give you a great overview of everything and they explain everything extremely well and provides a lot of pictures to help you understand.

If you are at the very start of your Volunteer service, this is must have information. This was recommended by a Career fighter fighter who was providing training for our department. There has subsequently been a 5th and 6th edition. If you are pursuing licensing and certification, it would be best to have the newer version. If you are just starting out in volunteer service, this is a great resource which gets right to the point on many basics. Read through this and you will be aware of a lot of the need to know information (fire behavior, procedures, fuel types, etc.) However, as there is no substitution for hands on training and experience. Use this as a resource to supplement that training and experience.