Strange sparks at a car fire??????

[LACAPT]

Damn staight boys and girls, its magnesium,and you can also find it in some fancy mag wheels on vehicals these days. Like 570 said the car port wasn't on fire to begin with but it sure was when they started to pour the H2O to it. Gotta be careful with this stuff especialy if its in quantities the size of wheels or engine blocks.

[MikeDeVuono]

FYI....Neons blow up real nice when you hit the steering column with a stream.

[ttjjss]

We have had a few car fires with the same fireworks before, we usually get the shovel out and pack dirt around it, and outshe goes,
Tyler

[distchief60b]

My vote is also for magnesium or titanium

[Captain88]

I have to agree with a lot of what i've heard. From past experiences the older VW engine blocks were the pain. From a few experiences with Fords they like to put magnesium in the steering column somewhere in the ignition key area. We had a Ford truck here recently which two newer guys on the attack line had their first experience with magnesium. It's definitely fireworks, and if you ever get the chance to sit back and watch someones reaction, you're gonna need someone to hold you up to keep from falling over laughing. That's just the small stuff, if you ever get the "honor" of an old VW you'll have a whole new perspective on magnesium.

[robo14]

My message posted 7/29/2001 will answer your question for Chryslers and Ford.

Rob

[570eck]

I'm kind of surprised that people say it can't be put out by water. While I did say it was hard it is not impossible. Go to the science of fire for a minute. Fire is a tetraheydon - Heat, O2, Fuel, Chemical Reaction. Water has the ability to take away heat in this case it will take mass qaunities but can be done. Water can drown out the o2, once again mass qaunities but can be done. Now the fuel will still exist but you can stop the chemical reaction with the drowning and I mean serious amounts of water. I'm not trying to state that water is the best idea because in my opinion the class d agent is, but when all else fails do what firemen do best improvise.

[PEIPat]

Yeah, vote me for magnesium as well. The only thing that will put out a metal fire such as that (in my experience anyway...) is, as already stated, a class D extinguisher (aka METAL X) or alot of sand to contain the fire. Generally metal fires can't be put out, and should, if possible, be allowed to burn out. A little bit in a sterring colum shouldn't burn long anyway. In my years as a full time military FF, I had fires in 2 M113 APC's (armoured personell carriers) which use some magnesium as an armour 'cause it's light weight. In both cases we let them burn out under supervision...and on one we had to contain it with 8 truckloads of sand from the local DOT because of exposures and it also had on white phosphorous as a cargo. Becarful with metal fires, even small ones, they can be nasty.