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A firehose is a thick, high-pressure hose used to carry water or other fire retardant (such as foam) to a fire to extinguish it. Outdoors, it is attached either to a fire engine or a fire hydrant. Indoors, it can be permanently attached to a building's standpipe or plumbing system.

The usual working pressure of a firehose can vary between 8 bar and 20 bar ((0.8 to 2.0 MPa or 100 to 300 psi), while its bursting pressure can be up to 63 bar (6.3 MPa or 900 psi). (This level of pressure emitted by the hose can actually break in a weaker brick wall.)^{[citation needed]}

This high pressure also allows the fire hose to be used for crowd control, including most notably by Bull Connor in the Deep South of the United States against civil rights protestors in 1964. While still a common practice in many countries, it is no longer used in the U.S.

The first fire hose was invented by Jan van der Heyden in 1672.^[1]

There are generally five main sizes of firehose used today. The "Booster" or also known as the "garbage line" or "reel line", is small and similar to a garden hose in design but will provide more volume or pressure. It is used for smaller fires, overhaul and clean up. The next size is the 1 3/4 inch, the basic type used for attacking a fire. It is the normally used hose for entering a structure. The 2 1/2 inch hose, or the "Blitz Line" , is used for heavy levels of fire, and is used sparingly inside, and is used typically outside. The 3 inch and 5 inch hoses are used as supply lines, and are normally used to transport water to and from the hydrants to the engines or pumpers. There are also certain procedures that may use a 3 inch hose as an attack line.

1. ^ Fire fighting. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam.

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