Nothing stands in the way of Black Diamond firefighters getting the job done, including a pandemic.
Restricted from entering schools due to health and safety regulations surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the Black Diamond Fire Department have found another way to educate Kindergarten to Grade 6 C. Ian McLaren School students about fire safety during Fire Prevention Week Oct. 4-10.
Rather than visit each classroom in person, firefighters will speak with them via Zoom conference to keep the tradition alive, said Fire Chief Jamie Campbell.
“We typically go to C. Ian McLaren every year,” he said. “They see us over the course of seven years before they go to high school.”
The focus this year is the 2020 theme ‘Serve up fire safety in the kitchen.’
“If we start at this age in elementary school and start talking about fire safety and hazards, when little brother decides he’s going to cook something on the stove when mom is away, older brother or sister knows how to put it out,” said Campbell. “It’s just reinforcing all of that.”
Senior firefighter Landon Ference has created two videos – one on the dos and don’ts of cooking a turkey in a deep fryer and the other on how to put out grease fires. A link to Ference’s video on grease fires will be sent to teachers to show to students at their leisure while the turkey video will be available at town.blackdiamond.ab.ca for the general public.
Ference said he came up with the idea of creating the videos and going into the school virtually as a result of the COVID-19 safety criteria.
“We decided that we could have some fun with it and film in advance some of the dos and don’ts that happen during a grease pan fire,” he said. “Of course, we’re not giving the kids permission to try this at home. We want to demonstrate what should and should not be done in the event of a kitchen fire.”
Ference said he hopes students will go home and talk to their parents or guardians about what they learned.
In a typical year, firefighters visit each individual grade to discuss fire education, as well as river safety and Halloween safety, Ference said.
“During the Zoom meetings I’ll be talking to the kids more thoroughly about kitchen fire safety, smoke detectors and fire safety in general, basically the same criteria that we’ve done of the kids every year, just a little more in depth,” he said. “This format I believe is great considering the circumstances. We’re all adapting to the new criteria and are doing the best that we can with the cards we’ve been dealt.”
Ference said he’s never filmed a demonstration for students in the six years he’s been visiting the school and looks forward to the opportunity to demonstrate hazardous film scenes in a safe environment.
C. Ian McLaren School principal Stacey Swanson said she was delighted when Ference reached out to the school with an interest in continuing the annual education students receive around fire safety.
“They’ve come every year so it’s been a tradition and the kids really enjoy seeing them,” she said. “It’s a really creative way to continue with some of the traditions that have happened. In terms of the safety aspect you can’t have enough exposure for kids and it builds community.”
Swanson said teachers will have the students think up some questions to ask the firefighters before the Zoom meetings.
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