WEBVTT - What do those diamond-shaped signs on buildings mean?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Brainstuff from house stuff works dot com where

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<v Speaker 1>smart happens. Hi. I'm Marshall Brain with today's question. What

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<v Speaker 1>do those big diamond shaped signs with red, yellow, and

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<v Speaker 1>blue squares on the mean when you see them on

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<v Speaker 1>the sides of buildings. You see these signs on any

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<v Speaker 1>building that contains hazardous chemicals. The sign is called an

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<v Speaker 1>nfp A panel. N f p A stands for the

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<v Speaker 1>National Fire Protection Association. The idea behind these signs is

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<v Speaker 1>to give firefighters some sort of advanced notice on what

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<v Speaker 1>they're getting themselves into when they arrive at the scene

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<v Speaker 1>of a fire. When there's a house fire, firefighters have

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<v Speaker 1>a pretty good idea of what they're in for, but

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<v Speaker 1>if there's a fire at a warehouse in an industrial park,

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<v Speaker 1>it is very hard to know what chemicals might be

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<v Speaker 1>stored there. The n f p A panel is a

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<v Speaker 1>clear indication of what sort of dangers might lie inside.

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<v Speaker 1>The panel has four different areas. The red area is

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<v Speaker 1>the fire hazard area, the blue is the health hazard area,

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<v Speaker 1>the yellow is the reactivity area, and the white is

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<v Speaker 1>a specific hazard area. The numbers in the first three

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<v Speaker 1>areas range from zero to four, with zero signifying no hazard,

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<v Speaker 1>and four signifying a severe hazard. For example, in the

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<v Speaker 1>reactivity area, zero means stable, one means unstable if heated,

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<v Speaker 1>two means a violent chemical, three means shock or heat

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<v Speaker 1>may detonate, and four means may detonate on its own.

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<v Speaker 1>In the fire hazard area, the numbers indicate the flash point.

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<v Speaker 1>Zero means it won't burn, one means it will burn

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<v Speaker 1>above two hundred degrees, two means it will burn below

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<v Speaker 1>two hundred degrees, three means it will burn below one degrees,

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<v Speaker 1>and four means it will burn below seventy four degrees fahrenheit.

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<v Speaker 1>Concrete is an example of a class zero fire hazard.

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<v Speaker 1>It won't burn paper and wood, or class one. In

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<v Speaker 1>the health hazard area, zero means no hazard, one means

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<v Speaker 1>slightly hazard as, two means hazardous, three means extremely hazardous,

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<v Speaker 1>and four means deadly. In the specific hazard area, which

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<v Speaker 1>is the white square at the bottom of the diamond,

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<v Speaker 1>you'll see things like O X Y or oxy for oxidizer,

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<v Speaker 1>acid for acids, a O K for alkali, cr for corrosive.

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<v Speaker 1>You may also see a W with a bar through

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<v Speaker 1>it meaning use no water, or a radiation hazard symbol

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<v Speaker 1>for radioactive materials now you can drive around your neighborhood

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<v Speaker 1>and get a glimpse into what is stored in all

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<v Speaker 1>those buildings. Do you have any ideas or suggestions for

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<v Speaker 1>this podcast? If so, please send me an email at

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