Fireaway LLC is announcing that PSE&G, New Jersey's largest utility company, will outfit its fleet of service trucks with Stat-X First Responders, advanced aerosol-based fire suppression devices that can be tossed into a burning manhole to suppress a blaze within seconds.
Fires in manholes are rare but can be deadly without firefighting tools that enable a trapped worker to escape. The underground rooms, located primarily in more urbanized areas, contain the wiring that carries power through a utility's service area. Should a fire break out, utility workers can toss the soda can-sized First Responder canister into the manhole and suppress the fire almost instantaneously.
PSE&G ordered kits containing dual canisters of Stat-X First Responders for its entire fleet of underground service trucks after a recent demonstration of the fire suppression system's capabilities. Delivery begins immediately.
John Latka, PSE&G's vice-president of electric operations, said, “We want to ensure that our crews have the best tools available in every situation. After testing Stat-X at our Edison training center, we decided to outfit our 250 underground service trucks with this new device.”
That demonstration was what prompted PSE&G to order the new system. Assisted by the Edison Fire Department, Fireaway representatives ignited five gallons of diesel fuel into a simulated manhole, driving the interior temperature higher than 500 degrees. A thermal imaging camera inside documented the action when the Stat-X First Responder canister was tossed into the manhole. Within seconds, the fire was completely out, and temperatures began to drop immediately.
For more information about Stat-X, visit www.statx.com.