Firefighters teach fire safety

casey@theheraldnewspapers.com

Every year, fire departments from across the county do their part to fight fires by preventing them. Members of the Seymour Volunteer Fire Department made their rounds at Seymour Primary School last Tuesday to teach its second-graders the importance of fire safety.
Firefighter Kent Leitch visited Mrs. Atchley’s class to educate the youngsters on easy ways to avoid fire hazards and what to do in the case of a fire. Leitch went over the stop-drop-and-roll method if one’s clothes should ever catch fire.
He also discussed how to avoid smoke during a fire by staying low and crawling to safety.
“I can’t tell you how many calls we get from young kids who are able to save lives using these simple techniques,” said Leitch.
After a short informational video, the Seymour Volunteer firefighters took the students through a fire safety trailer in which they could practice emergency escapes in a simulated fire. The trailer is slowly filled with a simulated smoke to show the students how the smoke can be avoided and lives can be saved.
The trailer also had staged fire hazards to test if the students are able to recognize the hazards when they see them. These included a toaster that was too close to the kitchen sink, a pot-holder set too close to the stove, and a loaded power strip set out on the kitchen counter.
“They tend to learn more from doing rather than just hearing an adult talk about it,” said Leitch.
Every year, each of the county’s fire departments schedules a day with a local school for the program.