THE QUESTION OF WHETHER UNTRAINED CIVILIANS should use portable fire extinguishers has been marked by ongoing debate. The positions range from objections to the use of fire extinguishers by untrained people, on one hand, to the need for early intervention to minimize the impact of a fire, on the other hand.
What brought the issue of civilian use of fire extinguishers to light for the Haddon Heights (NJ) Fire Department was the State Legislature of New Jersey’s amendment of the Public Law for Smoke Detector (1991) and the Carbon Monoxide (2004) law in March 2005. The amended laws mandate that, in addition to smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, a portable fire extinguisher should be mounted in the area of the kitchen. The law defines a portable fire extinguisher as follows:
Portable fire extinguisher means an operable portable device, carried and operated by hand, containing an extinguishing agent that can be expelled under pressure for the purpose of suppressing or extinguishing a fire, and which is: (1) rated for residential use consisting of an ABC type; (2) no larger than a 10-pound rated extinguisher, and (3) mounted within 10 feet of the kitchen area, unless otherwise permitted by the enforcing agency .... (2/25/2004, State of New Jersey P.L. 2005, c.71)
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