Definition of Terms

1.Abatement – Any act that would

remove or neutralize a fire hazard.

2.Administrator – Any person who

acts as agent of the owner and
manages the use of a building for
him.

3.Air craft service station - That

portion of an airport where flammable
liquids are stored or dispensed and
shall include all facilities essential
thereto such as underground tanks
from which aircraft fuel and lubricants
maybe drawn through dispensing
device.
4.Alligatoring or Alligator Pattern - A
burned patternn usually on woods
resembling the skin marking of an
alligator, often used to trace the fire
to its origin.

5.Assembly Occupancy - The

occupancy or use of a building or
structure or any portion thereof by a
group of person for civic, political
education travel, religious, social,
amusement or recreational purposes.

6.Atoms - The smallest particles of

elements that take part in a chemical
reaction.

7.Automatic Fire Suppression

System – An integrated system of
 underground or overhead piping or
both connected to a source of
extinguishing agent or medium and
design in accordance with fire
protection engineering standards
which when actuated by its automatic
detecting device, suppresses fire
within the area protected.

8.Blasting Agent – Any material or

mixture consisting of a fuel and
oxidizer used to set off explosives.

9.Boiling Point - The temperature at

which a liquid is transformed or
converted to vapor.

10.Cargo Tank - Any container

mounted on a tank vehicle with a
 capacity of at least four hundred fifty
(450) liters used for carrying
flammable or combustible liquids. It
does not apply to the fuel tank of a
motor vehicle.

11.Cellulose Nitrate or Nitro

Cellulose – A highly combustible and
explosive compound produced by the
reaction of nitric acid with a cellulose
material.

12.Cellulose Nitrate Plastic

(Pyroxylin) – Any plastic substance,
materials or compound having
cellulose nitrate (nitro cellulose) as
base.
13.Chief of the Local Fire Service -
The official duly designated to head
the local fire service; or in cities/
municipalities where the policemen
are also performing the functions of
the Fire service, the station
commander of the Integrated
National Police.

14.Class A fire - Fire involving

ordinary combustible materials such
as wood, cloth, paper, rubber and
plastics.

15.Class B fire – Fire inflammable

liquids and gases.

16.Class C fire – Fire involving

energized electrical equipment.
17.Class D fire – Fire involving
combustible metals, such as
magnesium, sodium, potassium, and
other similar materials.

18.Combination Standpipe – Pipe

line system filled with water
connected to a constant water supply
for the use of the Fire Service and the
occupants of the buildings solely for
the suppression purposes.

19.Combustible Fiber Loose House

– An enclosed and isolated structure
where loose fibers are worked upon,
and used as storage for such fibers.
20.Combustible Fiber – Any readily
ignitable and free burning fiber such
as cotton, oakum, rags, waste cloth,
waste paper, kapok, hay, straw,
Spanish moss, excelsior and other
similar materials commonly used in
commerce.

21.Combustible, Flammable or
Inflammable – Descriptive of
materials that are easily set on fire.

22.Combustible Liquid – Any liquid

having a flash point at or above
37.8oC (100oF).

23.Combustion - The burning of any

substance, is a process that evolves
light and heat.
24.Corrosive Liquid – Any liquid which
causes fire when in contract with
organic matter or with certain
chemicals.

25.Crazing of Glass - Formation of

irregular cracks in glass due to rapid
intense heat - possibly when
accelerant is used.

26.Cryogenic – Descriptive of any

material which by its nature or as a
result of its reaction with other
elements produces a rapid drop in
temperature of the immediate
surroundings.
27.Curtain Board – A vertical panel of
non-combustible or fire resistive
materials attached to and extending
below the bottom chord of the roof
trusses, to divide the underside of the
roof into separate compartments so
that heat and smoke will be directed
upwards to a roof vent.

28.Damper – A normally open device

installed inside an air duct system
which automatically closes to restrict
the passage of smoke or fire.

29.Depth of Char - Depth of burning

wood used to determine length of
burn thereby locating the point of
origin of fire.
30.Dip Tank – a tank, vat or container
of flammable or combustible liquid in
which articles or materials are
immersed for the purposed of
coating, finishing, treating or similar
processes.

31.Distillation – The process of first

raising the temperature to separate
the more volatile from the less volatile
parts and then cooling and
condensing the result vapor so as to
produce a nearly purified substance.

32.Dry Standpipe – A type of

standpipe system in which the pipe
are normally not filled with water.
Water is introduced into the system
 thru fire Service connection when
needed.

33.Duct System - A continuous

passageway for the transmission of
air.

34.Dust – A finely powdered

substance which, when mixed with air
in the proper proportion and ignited
will cause an explosion.

35.Electrical Arc – An extremely hot

luminous bridge formed by the
passage of an electric current across
a space between two conductors or
terminals due to the incandescence
of the conducting vapor.
36.Ember – A hot piece of lump that
remains after a material has partially
burned, and is still oxidizing without
the manifestation of flames.

37.Endothermic Reaction - Changes

whereby energy is absorbed or is
added before the reaction takes
place.

38.Exothermic Reaction - Those that

release or give off energy (heat) thus
they produce substances with less
energy than the reactants.

39.Explosive – Includes any chemical

compound or mechanical mixture,
that is commonly used or intended for
 the purpose of producing an
explosion.

40.Explosive Magazine – building,

Structures or facilities used for the
storage of explosive shells, projectile
and ammunition.

41.Finishes – Materials used as final

coasting of a surface for ornamental
or protective purposes.

42.Fire – The active principle of

burning, characterized by the heat
and light of combustion.

43.Fire Alarm – Any visual or audible

signal produce by a device or system
to warm the occupants of the building
 or fire fighting elements of the
presence or danger of fire to enable
them to undertake immediate action
to save file and property and to
suppress the fire.

44.Fire Alerting System – A fire alarm

system activated by the presence of
a fire, where the signal is transmitted
to designated location instead of
sounding a general alarm, in order to
prevent panic.

45.Fire Door – A fire resistive door

prescribed for openings in fire
separation walls or portions.

46.Fire Engine - A heavy motor truck

equipped with fire fighting apparatus,
 especially power driven pumps for
throwing water and chemical under
high pressure, a.k.a. FIRE TRUCK.

47.Fire Exit Drill – A practice drill for

the orderly and safe evacuation of
occupants in a building.

48.Fire Hazard – Any condition or act

which increases or may cause an
increase in the probability of the
occurrence of fire, or which may
obstruct, delay, hinder or interfere
with fire fighting operations and the
safeguarding of life and property.

49.Fire Hydrant or Fire Plug - An

upright pipe with a spout or nozzle in
the street for drawing from a water
 main source especially for fighting
fire.

50.Fire Inspector/Fire Safety Inspector/

or Fire Prevention Inspector –
Personnel of the Fire Service of the
INP performing Fire safety and fire
prevention functions.

51.Fire Lane – The portion of a

roadway or public-way that should be
kept opened and unobstructed at all
times for the expedient operations of
fire fighting units.

52.Fire Protective Assembly - An

assembly incorporated in a structure
designed to prevent the spread of
 fire, such as dampers, curtain boards,
fire stoppers, etc..

53.Fire Protective and Fire Safety

Device – Any device intended for the
protection of buildings or persons to
include but not limited to built-in
protection system such as sprinklers
and other automatic extinguishing
system, detectors for heat, smoke
and combustion products and other
warning system components,
personal protective equipment such
as fire blankets, helmets, fire suits,
gloves and other garments that may
be put on or worn by persons to
protect themselves during fire.
54.Fire Resistance Rating - Th time
durationn that a material or
construction can withstand the effect
of hundred fire test.

55.Fire Safety Construction – Refers to

design and installation of walls,
barriers, doors, windows, vents,
means of egress etc. integral to and
incorporated into a building or
structure in order to minimize danger
to life from fire, smoke, fumes or
panic before the building is
evacuated. These features are also
designed to achieved, among others,
safe and rapid evacuation of people
through means of egress sealed from
smoke or fire, the confinement of fire
of the building by means of smoke-
 sealed and fire resistant doors, walls
and floors. It shall also means to
include the treatment of building
components or contents with flame
retardant chemicals.

56.Fire Service – An organization or a

component of integrated National
Police charged with the mission of
fire protection, fire protection and fire
conditions.

57.Fire Trap – A building unsafe in

case of fire because it will burn easily
or because it lacks adequate exits or
fire escapes.

58.Fire Wall – a wall designed to

prevent the spread of fire, having a
 fire resistance rating of not less than
four hours with sufficient structural
stability to remain standing even if
construction on either side collapses
under fire condition.

59.Flame Retardant – Any compound,

or mixture which when applied
properly improves the fire resistant
quality of fabrics and other materials.

60.Flame Spread Rating – The time in

which flame will spread over the
surface of a burning material.

61.Flash Point – The minimum

temperature at which any materials
gives off vapor in sufficient
 concentration to form an ignitable
mixture with air.

62.Forging – A process where a piece

of metal is heated prior to changing
its shape or dimensions.

63.Fulminate – A kind of stable

explosive compound, which explodes
by percussion.

64.Fumigant – A gas, fume, or vapor

used for the destruction or control of
insects, fungi, vermin, germs,
rodents, or other pets.

65.Hazardous Fire Area – Any land

covered with dry grass, cogon, reeds,
brush, and other highly combustible
 growth that fires are likely to occur
therein and hard to suppress.

66.Hazardous Operation/Process –
Any act of manufacturing, fabrication,
conversion, etc., that uses or
produces materials which are likely to
cause fires or explosions.

67.High Rise Building – Buildings,

structures or facilities fifteen (15)
meter or more in height.

68.Horizontal Channel – Any

uninterrupted space between
horizontal layers of stored
commodities. Such channel may be
formed by pallets, shelving, racks or
other storage arrangements.
69.Horizontal Exit – Passageway from
one building to another or through or
around a wall in approximately the
same floor level.

70.Hose Box – A box or cabinet where

fire hoses, valves and other
equipment are stored and arranged
for fire fighting.

71.Hose Reel – A cylindrical device

turning on an axis around which a fire
hose is wound and connected.

72.Hydrocarbon - Any substance

containing primarily carbon and
hydrogen.
73.Hypergolic Fuel – A rocket or liquid
propellant, which consists of
combinations of fuels and oxidizers
which ignite spontaneously on
contact with each other.

74.Industrial Baking and Drying – The

industrial process of subjecting
materials to heat for the purpose of
removing solvents or moisture from
the same, and/or to fuse certain
chemical salts to from a uniform
glazing on the surface of materials
being treated.

75.Jumper – A piece of metal or an

electrical conductor used to bypass a
safety device in an electrical system.
76.Line of Demarcation or
Demarcation Line - The line between
the charred and uncharred portion of
a burned material.

77.Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) –

any flammable gas liquefied through
pressure. The liquid vaporized under
normal atmospheric pressure.

78.Means of Egress – A continuous

and unobstructed route of exit from
any point in a building, structure or
facility to a public way.

79.Occupancy – The purpose for

which a building or portion thereof is
used or intended to be used.
80.Occupant – Any person actually
occupying and using a building or
portions thereof by virtue of a lease
contract with the owner or
administrator or by permission or
sufferance of the latter.

81.Occupant Load – The maximum

number of persons that may be
allowed to occupy a particular
building, structure or facility or
portions thereof.

82.Oil Burning Equipment – An oil

burner of any type together with its
tank, piping, wiring controls, blower
and related devices, and shall include
all oil fired units, heating and cooking
appliances.
83.Organic Coating – A liquid mixture
of binders such as alkyd,
nitrocellulose, acrylic, or oil, and
flammable and combustible solvents
such as hydrocarbon, ester, ketone
or alcohol, which when spread on a
surface becomes a durable protective
and decorative finish.

84.Organic Peroxide – A strong

oxidizing organic compound which
releases oxygen readily. It causes fire
when in contact with combustible
materials especially under conditions
of high temperature.

85.Overloading – The use of one or

more electrical appliances or devices
 which draw or consume electrical
current beyond the designed capacity
of the existing electrical system.

86.Owner – The person who holds the

legal rights of possession or title to a
building or real property.

87.Oxidation - The act of uniting or of

causing a substance to unite with
oxygen.

88.Oxidizing Agent - The substance

that acquires electrons during an
oxidation-reduction reaction. In the
course of the reaction, the oxidizing
agent is reduced.
89.Oxidizing Material – A material that
readily yields oxygen in quantities
sufficient to stimulate or support
combustion.

90.Panic Hardware – A mechanical

device consisting of linkages and a
horizontal bar across a door, which
when pushed from the inside will
cause the door to open and facilitate
exit from a building, structure or
facility.

91.Packing Rooms – Rooms where

baled, bundled or piled materials are
segregated into desires sizes or
groups.
92.Plenum – An air compartment or
chamber to which one or more ducts
are connected and which form part of
an air distribution system.

93.Point to Point Search - A method of

searching victims by first attending or
saving the first person then
proceeding to save the next victim.

94.Pressurized or Forced Draft

Burning Equipment – Type of burner
where the fuel is subjected to
pressure prior to discharge into the
combustion chamber and/or which
includes fans or other provisions for
the introduction of air at above
normal atmospheric pressure into the
same combustion chamber.
95.Public Assembly Building – Any
building or structure where fifty (50)
or more people congregate, gather,
or assemble for any purpose.

96.Public Way – Any street, alley or

other strip of land unobstructed from
the ground to the sky, deeded,
dedicated or otherwise permanently
appropriated for public use.

97.Pyrophoric – Descriptive of any

substance that ignites spontaneously
when exposed to air.

98.Refining – A process where

impurities and/or deleterious
materials are removed from a mixture
 in order to produce a pure element or
compound. It shall also refer to partial
distillation and electrolysis.

99.Self-Closing Doors – Automatic

closing doors that are designed to
confine smoke and heat and delay
the spread of fire.

100.Smelting – Melting or fusing of

metallic ores or compounds so as to
separate impurities from pure
materials.

101.Smoke Developed Rating – A

rating of a combustible materials
based on the density and volume of
smoke developed within a certain
 period of time when its surface is
ignited.

102.Smoking – Puffing, carrying and/or

use of lighted pipe, cigar, cigarette or
tobacco in any form.

103.Specific Gravity - The ratio of the

weight of a solid or liquid substance
to the weight of an equal volume of
water.

104.Spontaneous Combustion - The

ignition of combustible substance
without the applicationof flame or
spark due to continuing oxidation until
enough heat accumulates in a
confined space and ignition
temperature is released.
105.Spraying Area – Any area in which
dangerous quantities of flammable
vapor or combustible residues, dust
or deposits are present due to the
operation of spraying devices.

106.Sprinkler System – An integrated

network of hydraulically designed
piping installed in a building, structure
or area with outlets arranged in a
systematic pattern which
automatically discharges water when
activated by heat or combustion
products from a fire.

107.Standpipe System – A system of

vertical pipes in a building to which
fire hoses can be attached on each
 floor, including a system by which
water is made available to the outlets
as needed.

108.Tampering - The act of bringing

about an improper situation or
condition by clandestine means, such
as illegally wiring an electrical matter
to steal electricity.

109.Tank Vehicle – Any vehicle

carrying or towing a cargo tank used
for transporting flammable fluids or
hazardous chemicals.

110.Technology - The branch of

knowledge that deals with industrial
arts and sciences; the science of
technical process.
111.Triage - The act of separating
rescued victims to facilitate uniform
medical assistance.

112.Vapor Density - The weight of the

volume of pure gas composed to the
weight of a volume of dry air on the
same temperature and pressure.

113.Vapor Pressure - When liquid is

heated in a liquid container, the
molecules in a liquid state escape to
form gaseous molecules. The gas
molecules strike one another as well
as the walls of the container and may
return to the liquid state; the force
exerted by the molecules on the
surface of the liquid at equilibrium.
114.Vestibule – A passage hall or
antechamber between the outer
doors and the interior parts of a
house or building.

115.Vertical Shaft – An enclosed

vertical space of passage that
extends from floor to floor, as well as
from the base to the top of the
building.