Answer the following questions

 

1. What classification of fires is used in the United States of America?

 

2. According to what principle are fires classified?

3. How many classes of fires are there in the NFPA classification at present?

4. What combustible materials does class A fire involve?

5. What is the most effective extinguishing agent for class A fires?

6. What is the most common type of fire?

7. What are class B fires?

 

8. What combustibles do class B fires include?

9. What extinguishing agents are used to put out class B fires?

10. What are class C fires?

11. What combustible do class C fires include?

12. Why is it dangerous to use water for the extinction of class C fires?

13. What should be done before starting the extinction of class C fires?

14. What combustible materials do class D fires involve?

 

15. Why water is not used for the extinction of class D fires?

16. What is the most suitable extinguishing agent for class D fires?

17. What are class K fires? Why are they singled out in a separate class?

18. What methods of extinction are used for fires of different classes?

 

19. Is the classification of fires the same in different countries? What classes of fires are identified in Russia?

 

Translate the following sentences into English.

 

1. Класс пожара определяется в соответствии с природой горючего материала, размером и интенсивностью пожара, а также с веществом, наиболее эффективным для его тушения.

2. Самыми распространенными являются пожары класса «А».

 

3. Вода является одним из самых эффективных средств пожаротушения. Она охлаждает горящие вещества, т.е. их температура становится ниже температуры горения.

 

4. Пожары класса «С» можно тушить только веществами, которые не проводят электрический ток.

 

5. Нельзя использовать воду или пену для тушения электрического оборудования, находящегося под напряжением.

 

6. Средства пожаротушения, содержащие воду неэффективны и даже опасны при горении металлов.

 

7. Для того, чтобы выбрать верное средство пожаротушения необходимо определить класс пожара.

 

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8. Пожары класса «D» характеризуются очень высокой температурой горения.

 

9. Национальная противопожарная ассоциация – международная некоммерческая организация, которая занимается обеспечением пожарной, электрической безопасности и безопасности строительства.

 

10. В Российской Федерации пожары принято классифицировать следующим образом: пожары класса А – горение твёрдых веществ, пожары класса B – горение жидких веществ, пожары класса С – горение газообразных веществ, пожары класса D – горение металлов, пожары класса E – горение электроустановок.

 

Express the main idea of the text in 5–7 sentences. Write your summary in English.

Retell the text according to the following plan.

 

1. The principles of fire classification.

2. Class A.

 

3. Class B.

4. Class C.

5. Class D.

 

Be ready to work on the following projects.

 

1. Fire Classes in Russia.

2. Electrical Fires.

3. Metal Fires.

4. Safe Working with Flammable Substances.

 

TEXT B

 

Read the text and choose its main idea.

 

1. Extinguishment of electrical fires.

2. Electrical fires are very tricky ones.

3. The causes of electrical fires.

 

HOLIDAY FIRES

 

It seems to happen most around the Christmas holidays – the electrical outlet begins putting on extra weight. There are nine strings of lights for the tree, electric candles, a CD player with holiday music and so on. Overloaded

 

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outlets do cause fires – an estimated 5,300 annually in American households.

Almost 2,000 of those occur during the holidays.

 

In addition to overloaded outlets, there are other things that can make your home go up in flames this Christmas. Things like faulty wiring, winter weather and bad product choices can all act as contributing factors in a holiday fire.

 

Every year, thousands of counterfeit electrical products end up on the shelves of legitimate stores across the United States. And a lot of these products simply are not built to withstand the demands of the extra holiday decorations. Even certified products can cause an overload. Electrical devices that are built to put out heat, like space heaters and hair dryers, tend to use more power than other devices. Devices like these may overload a circuit, especially one that is already reaching its maximum amperage allowance. Coupled with a faulty circuit breaker, this overload can cause the products to overheat and possibly catch fire.

 

But it is even more likely that a fire will occur in a place you cannot easily see. Waste heat generated by the electrical current can cause wiring hidden within a home's walls to expand and contract, eventually loosening it. Once that wiring is loose, the electricity can arc, with a heat output reaching 1,500 to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. That's more than enough to ignite wood or old insulation under normal circumstances, but winter weather is less humid than in the summer. Inside a house in the winter months, the relative humidity within the walls can drop to that of the average desert, turning studs - wooden wall supports - into kindling, easily ignited by an arcing current.

 

Here we arrive at one of the problems with electrical fires: By the time you see smoke coming out of your outlet, a fire has most likely already begun and is spreading out of sight within your walls and up to your attic. It's easy for a homeowner who has turned off the power to a burning socket to think that they've taken care of the problem. But an unseen fire may already be building beyond the outlet.

 

Even worse, electrical fires can be particularly tricky to put out. Since they involve electricity, using water to put out the fire can cause electrocution. Chemical powders can cause the fire to smolder then reignite. If you notice an electrical fire, you should turn off your power (if it is safe) and leave your house. Then call 911 to report the fire.