Fire safety basics taught to the region’s kids

By Liam Nash

Mar 27, 2023

Having a go: Students from Ardmona Primary School take turns with the fire hose.

Students from Greater Shepparton learned valuable lessons about fire safety, with CFA District 22 members running children through the basics last week.

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With the CFA/VFBV State Firefighter Championships in full flight in Mooroopna over the past fortnight, close to 400 kids were able to tap into the knowledgeable heads stationed in Mooroopna through the Fire Safe Champions program.

CFA community engagement co-ordinator Emily Guthrie said it was a great advantage for children to learn about common home fire safety risks and how to prevent them.

Vital skills: St Mary’s Primary School students get down low.

“Some of the things we covered included practical activities like ‘stop, drop and roll’ and crawling low in smoke. We also taught them about creating a home fire safe plan and how to call 000,” she said.

“Mooroopna Fire Brigade made its fire truck available to the program so that the kids could spray some water around at the end of each session.

“It was really valuable having the brigade here, as they were paged to an incident during one of the sessions. This gave the children a real-life example of how firefighters respond after someone calls 000.”

Important: Toolamba Primary School kids learn about kitchen safety.

North East Region community safety manager Darren Viney also lauded the program, touching on its importance as a teaching tool for children.

“The Fire Safe Champions has been a great opportunity for CFA members to engage and educate children face-to-face in the unique environment of the state championships facility,” he said.

“It provides a memorable experience that reinforces the fire safety messages.