First use of a fire shelter

The last resort used by firefighters confronted with wildfires that have surrounded them is known as a fire shelter. Designed to reflect heat, keep out convective heat and contain breathable air, they are deployed on the ground or in a dug out hollow and resemble a shallow one-person tent. The first documented use of a fire shelter was in 1804 when an American mother threw a bison hide over her son to protect him from a prairie wildfire.

The incident described took place on 29 October 1804, while the Lewis and Clark expedition was making its way through what is now North Dakota (a few days travel north of the present-day city of Bismarck). Writing in his journal, William Clark wrote, “The Prarie got on fire and went with Such Violenc & Speed as to Catch a man & woman & burn them to Death, Several escapd. among other a Small boy who was Saved by getting under a green Buffalow Skin”. A ‘green’ animal hide is one that hasn’t been stripped or tanned, and so would have been a thick, damp insulating pelt – an excellent natural fire shelter.