This week is Fire Prevention Week and Vernon firefighters are visiting the elementary schools to talk to children about smoke alarms, what to do and what not to do if there’s a fire in their home, how to call 911 in case of emergency.
Caption: Firefighter Joe Hampton talks to first graders at North East School.
This year the firefighters are being assisted by educators who volunteer with the department to help spread the fire safety message.
Tuesday at Northeast School, first graders from Cathy Meyer and Fallon Harrison’s classes were treated to the fire safety message and a chance to climb through a fire truck by firefighters Joe Hampton and Adam Bycholski and educator Laura Bush.
Caption: Firefighter Joe Hampton, left, talks to students as Firefighter Adam Bycholski shows students the protective gear firefighters wear
Bush focused on smoke detectors, the sound they make and what the children should do in case they hear it. She also urged them to never play with matches or anything else that can start a fire, and to talk to their families about creating a plan to get out of the house in case of fire and a place to meet outside.
Bush and Hampton also stressed to the students to not hide in case of fire. Fires can be scary, but it’s important not to hide under a bed or in a closet.
Bycholski put on the protective gear a firefighter wears when fighting a fire. The gear can look and sound scary, especially when a firefighter breathes through his or her air tank, Hampton said. The firefighter is there to help, he said.
The kids were enthusiastic, especially when they got to climb into the fire trucks.