What is a bucket brigade?

The term bucket brigade concerns the firefighting field technique, which includes walking water along the human chain to insert the fire. This method was primarily used before the arrival of a mechanized firefighting device and can still be used in some undeveloped areas of the world. In this technique, one fills a bucket near the water source, which is then handed over to his hand until he reaches the last individual who throws him on fire. The bucket brigade is also occasionally used as an event in demonstrations and competitions of firefighters. It can also be an effective method for transporting other types of materials in different situations, and this term is sometimes used to describe different types of volunteer efforts.

Before the development and widespread use of the mechanized firefighting device, the bucket brigade was the most common method of fighting fire. In some cities, every household had a bucket; When there was a fire, a member of the one family would report to the scene to help it.The bucket brigade often required many participants to successfully insert fire. Once equipment was introduced, such as hose trucks and hand pumps, fires could be fought more efficiently with a smaller working force. These devices could put more water on the flames in a shorter time.

In some insufficiently developed areas of the world, lacking modern facilities for firefighting can still be used by the technique of bucket brigades. It works in a way that has been compared to the electron transport chain. People are located at intervals extending from water source to fire and use buckets to transport water; The water moves across the border, but individuals remain stationary. The person closest to the water source is filled with every bucket that is handed over quickly from one to the next until the end of the “human chain”. The last individual throws on fire and then every empty bucket is handed over back to replenishedand.

In most areas of the world, the bucket brigade is no longer used as firefighting technology, but the tradition is maintained alive by incorporation into demonstrations and competing events. Some firefighters participate in competitions such as a drill, called a tournament or collected, with events that simulate the scenarios of firefighters and bucket brigades, are popular and easy to appear. The bucket brigade can also be used to transport objects, such as medical needs or food in various situations, such as efforts to help natural disasters when roads are impassable. The term is also occasionally used for a general reference to the volunteer efforts of the community, including a large number of people.