It consists of a sheet of a fire retardant material , which is placed over a fire in order to smother it. Fire blankets, along with fire extinguishers, are fire safety items that can be useful in case of a fire. These nonflammable blankets are helpful in temperatures up to 900 degrees and are useful in smothering fires by not allowing any oxygen to the fire. Due to its simplicity, a fire blanket may be more helpful for someone who is inexperienced with fire extinguishers.