What should you do if material catches fire in a laser cutter?

This answer assumes an enclosed machine at Class 1 or 2 in its actual configuration. An open-frame or pass-through machine, a converted one, or one that is Class 3B or 4 in normal use is not covered here, and its fire response needs a laser safety officer and a written program first.

Do not open the lid to look. Whether the lid stays closed or opens during a fire inside the machine belongs to your school’s written fire procedure, and published guidance splits on it, so we do not choose for you. Move students away first, then follow that procedure.

Do not fight the fire unless you have been trained. MIT says no one should use a fire extinguisher without familiarization training, and the University of Florida’s accident procedure says not to fight a fire unless it is very small and you have been trained. Whether your staff are permitted to fight even a small fire, and what equipment the room has, are set by your institution’s fire safety plan and fire authority. An institution may require evacuation only. MIT also says shop-specific responses to flare-ups and fires belong in user training, so learn your room’s plan before you run a job, not during one.

After any fire, the machine does not run again until it has been reviewed. The University of Florida’s rule is that after a laser accident, use does not resume until the laser safety authority has reviewed the incident. In a school, take the machine out of service and let the person responsible for the equipment, with authorized service, decide.