OG 4042 C & D Tire Recycling Plant Response

Issued By: OPERATIONS (B. Clarke)    
Approved By: Fire Chief William H. Mosher
Date of Issue: 2010/05/03


PURPOSE: 

To identify the response requirements to the C&D Tire Recycling Plant and to aid in the control of tire fires, as well as understanding the effects these types of fires have on the environment.

OBJECTIVE:

Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency will have a full understanding of the effects of tire fires on the environment as well as the ability to control tire fires at the C &D Recycling plant.

SCOPE:

This operating guideline applies to career and volunteer members of Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency.

PROCEDURE:

RESPONSE:

Upon confirmation from dispatch of a working fire, a minimum of 3 engines and 6 tankers shall respond. The Incident Commander may request or cancel additional apparatus as needed.

CONSIDERATIONS:

Tire fires present the same potential threat to the environment that an incident involving an oil tanker or a railroad tank car carrying hazardous substances. The average passenger car tire holds 2.5 gallons of oil. This could turn the tire pile into a running oil fire.

•    Exposure hazards associated with the smoke plume, water runoff, and soil include: Volatile organic chemicals, Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, Carbon Monoxide, and Heavy metals.

•    These toxins can be absorbed either through the skin, mucus membranes, or respiratory system.

•    Areas of consideration should include:
    •    Site location;
    •    Type of operation salvage or recycling; managed or unmanaged;
    •    Tire piles composition;
    •    Tire pile size;
    •    Available equipment; 
    •    Hazards;
    •    Exposures;
    •    Utilities.

SIZEUP:

Upon arrival the company officer must determine the stage of combustion the tire pile is in. Once a pile has gained an open flame front, the surrounding tire material absorbs the heat of the fire. Immediately separating the burning portion from the rest of the pile and/or applying water and foam would eliminate the threat to the remaining tires.

During the free burning stage, fire spreads quickly and there is a dramatic increase in smoke and heat. Use of water in this stage of a tire fire could increase the products of incomplete combustion like carbon monoxide and particulate matter. The cooled tires may continue to pyrolize, producing large quantities of oil. A crust may form over the pile while internal temperatures reach about 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The smoldering stage has begun.

Oil not consumed by the fire will leach, pool, and begin to flow under the pile. Heat from the fire could ignite the oil, resulting in a three-dimensional fire. Products of incomplete combustion continue to be a health hazard.

During the initial size-up, the company officer has to determine if the fire can be extinguished quickly without endangering personnel. If the fire is in the free burning or smoldering stage, the most immediate concern will be the life safety of firefighters and the community. Approach to the incident should be in accordance with tactics common to other potential hazardous materials incidents. 
Initial size-up must evaluate the emergency in terms of:

•    Personnel safety;
•    Public health;
•    Environmental impact;
•    Threatened exposures;
•    Extent of fire;
•    Need for additional resources.

PERSONNEL SAFETY:

Awareness of the hazards involved in a tire fire can be the best personnel protection. Heat exhaustion and working in less than ideal conditions is a reality in a large tire fire.
•    Full Personnel Protective Equipment (PPE) shall be worn including the use of SCBA.
•    The use of latex gloves under fire protection gloves will aid in reducing contaminants from entering the skin.
•    The risk of exposure to toxic chemicals continues after the fire is out. Smoldering tires are as toxic as tires in a free burning state.
•    The Incident Commander shall establish a decontamination sector for all personnel leaving the fire area. All protective clothing, firefighting equipment, and apparatus will need to be decontaminated.
•    Be aware of the dangers of machinery and heavy equipment operating on the fire scene. Collapsing walls of tires can block escape routes or cut off water supplies.

PUBLIC HEALTH

Command should determine early whether to evacuate the surrounding areas. No strategy for managing the incident should bypass evacuation considerations. Evacuation should be established early. The process will be managed according to the Evacuation procedure.

ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

Command should size-up the potential environmental consequences of the fire and begin notifying the appropriate agencies. Early notification will facilitate their timely placement into the Command structure and involvement in the incident.


Areas of concern will include:

•    Life safety;
•    Potential toxic runoff;
•    Bodies of water;
•    Smoke plume;
•    Wind direction/speed.

TACTICS

Important tactical considerations include:

•    Life safety;
•    Protecting exposures;
•    Isolating burning tires;
•    Use of heavy equipment;
•    Overhead or underground utilities.

Immediate evacuation of the incident scene is a high priority. Every effort should address life safety of the incident scene. Protection of the fire crew's safety will be addressed continuously. Protect exposures. Command needs to determine the amount of fuel actively burning and the total amount of fuel available. Estimate the rate of spread to determine what will be allowed to burn and where fire breaks will be cut through the pile.

STRATEGY

Successful options for fighting a tire fire have been employed individually and in many cases, in combination with one another. Reduced to the lowest common denominator, these options are: Burn it, Bury it, or Drown it.

1.    Burn it: Letting a tire pile burn has its merits. Soil and water pollution may be drastically reduced when many of the products of combustion go up in smoke. The clean-up costs can be reduced when compared to other options.

A precedent for the burn it strategy appears in fire responses to chemical fires. Adding water to fires or hazardous materials, which react to water, could exacerbate the emergency. Importantly, the fire service must manage and control the burn. Protecting exposures and separating tires from the burn area will continue to be a tactical priority.

2.    Bury It: This site has designated sand piles and machinery on site for burying any piles that may be involved or have the potential to be involved.

3.    Drown It: Water, foam, and additives have their own place as an option. The drown it strategy is best employed with forethought and careful pre-planning, knowing in advance the topography and exposure hazards to water sources will be critical. Drawbacks to the “drown it” strategy include:

•    An increase in the toxic air emissions as the fire is cooled causing the combustion process to slow down. 
•    An inordinate amount of water runoff combined with pyrolitic oil will be the result of trying to drown out a fire.
•    Effectiveness of working lines applied to a tire fire is questionable. Hand-lines alone cannot reach the interior spaces of a tire fire.
•    The use of working lines on chunk and chipped tires, however, can be effective when used in a fog application. Here again, separating the inventory from the burn area is important to the control and extinguishment of chipped and chunk tire materials.
•    The use of foam would best be employed on small tire fires or when the fire is in the incipient stage. Pulling a larger tire pile apart with heavy machinery and applying foam would be a prudent use of the product. Foam should only be employed as part of a predetermined strategy.

CLEANUP AND OVERHAUL

Unlike traditional structural fires or wildland fires, clean up on tire fires will, in all probability, be turned over to an appropriate environmental protection agency.

Hazards to personnel exist long after the fire is out. Toxicity levels of tire fire sites suggest high concentrations of contaminates. Flying ash and contaminated soil blown around the site may increase your exposure risks.

RELATED POLICIES/ OPERATING GUIDELINES:

•    OG 7004 HAZMAT Responsibilities
•    P-607 PPE, OG 4016 Evacuation of personnel at incident

OPERATING GUIDELINE REVIEW:

This operating guideline shall be reviewed when/if there are changes/amendments to the procedure to follow when at fires at C&D Recycling Plant.