For a person on fire, with water available, what should you instruct?

• A. Stop, drop to the ground, cover their face, and roll; if water is available, douse with water
• B. Douse with water immediately until the flames are completely out
• C. Wrap in a blanket and smother flames
• D. Run away from the flames

Answer: (A)

When someone is on fire, the immediate priority is to stop the burning by smothering the flames and then cooling the skin if possible. The recommended action is to tell them to stop, drop to the ground, and roll to smother the flames and reduce the flame’s contact with their body. If water is available, douse the burning areas as you roll to help extinguish the flames and cool the tissue. This combination quickly cuts off the heat source, deprives the fire of oxygen, and lowers the temperature of burned skin, which minimizes tissue damage and pain.

Other approaches don’t provide the same immediate combination of smothering and cooling. Simply pouring water without the rolling step may not effectively smother the flames and can miss the crucial moment to remove the heat rapidly. Wrapping in a blanket can trap heat and may delay extinguishing the flames. Running away from the flames exposes more skin and can let the fire spread or intensify.