Putting a fire out completely: drown, stir, feel

Water takes heat away from the fire: it evaporates on the embers and carries off a great deal of energy. When the embers cool below the temperature at which they can keep smouldering, the “heat” side of the fire triangle is missing. For that to stay so, really all the embers must be wet and cold.

The problem is hidden pockets of embers. Under a layer of ash or inside a charred piece of wood, the water often does not reach on the first pour. Ash insulates well, so it can stay hot underneath for a long time. Only stirring brings these spots to the surface so they get water too.

Merely piling on soil or sand does separate the embers from the air, but hardly cools them. Underneath they can keep smouldering for hours, flare up again when wind blows the soil away, or spread underground in organic soil.

Start in good time. Stop adding wood well before you leave or go to sleep, and let the fire burn down. The fewer embers are left, the faster and with less water the fire can be put out.

Plan enough water – usually more than you think, often several litres. Pour slowly over all the embers and ash, including the edges, until the hissing stops. Then stir everything with a stick or shovel, scrape charred pieces of wood and wet them one by one. Repeat pouring and stirring until everything is soaked.

Finally, the feel test: hold the back of your hand at a safe distance above the fire site and move it closer slowly. If you still feel warmth, keep pouring and stirring. Do not reach straight into ash that could still be hot. Only when everything is cold may you leave.

Pouring creates hot steam and stirs up ash. Pour slowly and keep your face and hands out of the steam. Anyone who tips the water in all at once is easily hit by the burst of steam.

If a fire spreads into vegetation and cannot be put out at once, it is no longer a job for a pot of water. Get everyone to safety, move away crosswise to the direction of spread and away from the wind, and call the local emergency number (112 in the EU). This method of extinguishing is only meant for small, controlled fires.

If there is hardly any water, you can mix the embers with sand or mineral soil – not just cover them –, stir thoroughly and keep checking until everything is cold. This takes longer and is less reliable. It is better to bring enough water from the start.

Once everything is cold, you can – where allowed and sensible – scatter the cold ash, put stones back and replace lifted turf. That way the spot soon looks as it did before.

In an existing, official fire ring, however, you leave everything in place. It is meant to be used again. But take rubbish and food scraps with you instead of leaving them in the ash.

The formula “drown, stir, feel” is used in wildfire prevention campaigns in North America. It sums up a simple experience: fires that were only superficially put out often flare up again.

Letting a fire “burn out” and leaving is not a solution, even when no flames are visible. And ground with a lot of organic material such as peat or thick needle litter is especially treacherous: embers can travel underground there. Such places should be avoided for fires in the first place.