Struggling in the heat: Firefighters heed safeguards battling blaze on record hottest day
DALLAS (CBSNewsTexas.com) - Tuesday's fire at the historic Oak Cliff church took place during the hottest part of the day, on the hottest day of the year. Investigators are still working to determine the cause.
As you can imagine, this can be incredibly taxing on firefighters. At the street level, crews were getting temperatures readings of around 112 degrees.
"As a result, we brought out a lot more firefighters," DFR Battalion Chief Scott Clumpner said. "That fire typically would not have been a six-alarm fire."
Each firefighter worked short 20-30 minute shifts before being brought to a rehab area with water and chairs. DART also provided a bus where they could cool off.
"Overall, it's not hard to go down and with all that gear on.. as much as it protects you from the fire, it does trap heat inside," Clumpner said.
In just about 30 seconds of waking around in the heat, the temperature inside those suits goes from 99 degrees to 108.
He said most firefighters are trained as paramedics. They know what to look for when it comes to heat related illnesses.
