[vhcook]

My assumption is that the early poking around near the fire was an attempt to find and hit the main breaker, which is usually the first line of defense before they go to the extinguishers. Even when clearly labelled, the smoke can make it really hard to see the breaker. Blowing on the flames, however, was probably not the best plan.

Later, they popped the cover to make it easier to get the fire extinguisher onto the fire.