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Podcasts Take Two
How firefighters use fire tents as a last resort
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Jul 2, 2013
Listen • 4:43
How firefighters use fire tents as a last resort
Fire tents are tightly packed cubes of folded aluminum, fiberglass and fabric that can reflect 95% of fire's radiant heat, and are only used a last resort.
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Flickr/ Washington St. Dept. of Natural Resources
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Flickr/ wyoguard
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(
Flickr/ Washington St. Dept. of Natural Resources
)

Fire tents are tightly packed cubes of folded aluminum, fiberglass and fabric that can reflect 95% of fire's radiant heat, and are only used a last resort.

Fire tents are tightly packed cubes of folded aluminum, fiberglass and fabric that can reflect 95 percent of fire's radiant heat. Firefighters carry them on their belts, and are trained to only use these tents as a last resort. 

Bill Streever has been embedded with fire crews and is the author of "Heat: Adventures In The World's Fiery Places." He joins the show today to talk more on how fire tents work in the field.