Fires behave according to the basic principles of combustion as determined by the laws of chemistry and physics. Fires can be observed behaving erratically and can be unpredictable when the conditions of combustion change or are unknown. Scientists study fire behaviour in detail to provide firefighters with the knowledge to observe and predict fire behaviour. This enables firefighters to stay safe and develop strategies to control fires.
The fundamental behaviour of all fires is determined by the combination of fuel, air and heat. These are the everyday elements that affect fire behaviour. Remove any one of these elements and the fire is extinguished. This is known as the fire triangle.
Fuel characteristics:
Type, quantity and moisture content
Land topogrphy (especially slope), distribution and proximity to other fuel
Weather conditions:
Wind speed, temperature and relative humidity
The accumulated knowledge on fire behaviour is available on the following pages which provide the detailed knowledge on fire behaviour across a broad range of fire and fuel types.
