Two firefighters injured because of heat while battling two-alarm at Fresno warehouse
.jpeg "The Fresno Fire Department used a large fan to blow smoke out of a building during a two-alarm commercial fire in southwest Fresno on Tuesday, July 12, 2022.")
Two firefighters were injured because of heat-related stress while battling a two-alarm fire at a warehouse Tuesday afternoon in southwest Fresno.
Crews responded to the fire at 3:45 p.m. on the 3200 block of South East Avenue.
Fresno Fire spokesman Jonathan Lopez said the fire was knocked down because of the building’s sprinkler system, but smoke inside the building and the heat posed problems.
“This is a large structure that was full of smoke when firefighters arrived,” he said. “The amount of smoke greatly limited visibility inside of the structure, which added to the time it took for firefighters to locate the fire.
“Their protective gear, called turnouts, is meant to protect them from flames and heat, but it also keeps heat in, and can make the wearer feel up to 20 degrees hotter than the ambient temperature. All of the gear firefighters wear is heavy, and adds to the physical demands that working in hot weather brings.”
Crews had to use a large fan to blow the smoke out of the building, Lopez said.
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Two firefighters were checked out by emergency medical service personnel for heat exhaustion because of the fire and hot weather that topped at 103 degrees. They were treated at the scene.
Extra firefighters were called because of the size of the building and the need to rotate personnel through work and rest cycles, Lopez said.
