Every year in Russia tens of thousands of people die in fires — and the main threat is not the flames themselves. About 80% are poisoned by combustion products, primarily carbon monoxide. It reduces the blood’s ability to carry oxygen, and after only a few breaths in a smoke-filled room a person can lose consciousness.
This is the main danger: you can be far from open flames and still find yourself trapped. Acrid smoke spreads rapidly through corridors and stairwells, and without special protection it is almost impossible to escape it. Even a few minutes — which is roughly how long it usually takes rescuers to arrive (on average from 5 to 10 minutes) — can be decisive.
For such situations there is a simple but effective solution — a filtering self-rescuer.
What a self-rescuer is and how it works
A self-rescuer is personal protective equipment specifically designed for emergency evacuation (unlike bulky gas masks). This single-use device is a hood with a transparent panoramic visor that fits snugly over the head and does not restrict visibility. A powerful combined filter is built into the hood and acts as a reliable barrier.
The operating principle of a self-rescuer is extremely simple. The wearer inhales air from the environment, but before it reaches the airways it passes through a special filter. This filter, like a sponge, absorbs carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, acrolein and other toxic substances released during combustion. As a result, the person breathes purified air, and their eyes and face are protected from smoke and intense heat by the hood’s transparent visor.
Filtering self-rescuers differ from isolating devices: they do not contain an air cylinder. That is why they are lightweight and compact, and can be used immediately without special training. The protection time ranges from 15 to 40 minutes — enough to safely leave even a high-rise building.
When a self-rescuer is not a luxury but a necessity
The law does not require ordinary citizens to own a self-rescuer, but safety logic suggests otherwise. There are several situations when this device becomes critically important:
• Living in an apartment building. A fire in one apartment or on a stairwell is the most likely scenario. Thick smoke instantly fills entrances, and the smell of burning spreads through ventilation. In such conditions even a short route to the exit via the stairs becomes difficult because of smoke. A self-rescuer stored in the hallway helps ensure safe evacuation and gives time to calmly leave the premises.
• Fire in an office or public place. Large crowds, complex layouts and panic only increase evacuation time. Having a compact self-rescuer in a desk or bag ensures safety and helps people remain calm and act according to evacuation procedures.
• Family safety. Having self-rescuers at home is especially important if the family includes elderly people, children or relatives with limited mobility who find it harder to leave a fire quickly. Models for children from 7 years old are produced in smaller sizes, and for infants there are special protective hoods — an adult puts the hood on the child.
Important to remember
In an emergency, first put the self-rescuer on yourself (this is the only way to preserve your strength and ability to help others), and then provide protection for children, elderly relatives and people with limited mobility.
How to choose and use a self-rescuer?
When choosing a device for home or work, you should:
- Make sure the device has a valid certificate of conformity — this guarantees its reliability.
- Pay attention to the instructions: they should be clear and fully translated into Russian.
- Check the integrity of the sealed packaging, which ensures that the filter has retained its properties until the moment of use.
- Assess the protection time: it should be sufficient to leave the smoke-filled area and reach a safe zone.
It is important to correctly assess the protective time of the self-rescuer
For most residential and office buildings this indicator is at least 15 minutes, but if you are on upper floors, it is worth choosing a larger margin of time — 30 or 40 minutes.
When professionally selecting self-rescuers for work at enterprises or institutions located near chemically hazardous sites, it is important to consider additional risks. In addition to combustion products, the air may contain emergency hazardous chemical substances (AHOV) — chlorine, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and others. In such cases you need self-rescuers with filters that provide protection not only from carbon monoxide and smoke, but also from specific hazardous chemical compounds. Filter markings (for example, A, B, E, K) indicate which substances they protect against. For household use in ordinary residential and office buildings, standard models that protect against combustion products are usually sufficient.
Using a self-rescuer is intuitively simple, as confirmed by the Ministry of Emergency Situations (EMERCOM). The main thing is to act quickly but carefully.
Procedure:
- Step 1: In an emergency, open the packaging and take out the self-rescuer.
- Step 2: Tear open the inner sealed package.
- Step 3: Take the hood in your hands, find the elastic collar. Slightly stretch it and pull the hood over your head so that the filter (usually at the lower part) is positioned in front of the mouth and nose.
- Step 4: Tuck hair inside the hood to ensure a tight fit. Check that the view through the transparent visor is clear and unobstructed.
IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER! A self-rescuer increases the chances of a safe evacuation. Statistics show that smoke creates the greatest difficulty during a fire: it hinders orientation and movement. It is important to place the device in an easily accessible location and to inform your family about it. This measure helps you be prepared for unforeseen circumstances.