NEENAH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Next week is Fire Prevention Week.
In honor of it, the Neenah-Menasha Fire department is helping teach elementary schoolers about fire safety.
Fire Prevention Week was officially established in 1922 to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire and the Peshtigo Fire, which both happened in 1871.
“That way if they’re not remembering day in and day out, at least from year to year there’s one time a year where they are paying attention and thinking about their smoke detectors, thinking about a home fire escape plan,” said Troy Jahns, Shift Commander with Neenah-Menasha Fire.
Janhs has been part of the department’s fire prevention program for 31 years.
“I love it because of the kids,” he said. “To see the smiles on their faces, to see them laugh, I’ve always enjoyed that. That’s my favorite part.”
Students get to see a character act out fire prevention tips. This year is superhero themed. The program is interactive as well. It teaches kids how to use smoke detectors, stop drop and roll, and how to escape a fire.
“The first two weeks in October we visit every elementary school in Neenah and Menasha, both public and private and we put on a skit for them because we’re trying to get safety messages across, but we want it to be fun for them,” said Jahns.
Cooking fires are the leading cause of fires across the U.S. In June, the Neenah-Menasha department responded to four cooking fires within a seven-day period.
“Fires happen to everyday people all the time and usually it’s because they were careless or unprepared and so they have to understand the first step towards safety is understanding that this is something that can happen to you,” said Jahns.
This is Neenah Mayor Jane Lang’s first time seeing the department’s fire prevention program.
“I thought it was great, it was really engaging,” said Lang.
She says she’s proud of the department’s work on spreading the word about fire safety to the younger generation.
“The firefighters did a fantastic job really teaching the kids some important lessons about fire safety and they made it so fun, it was really enjoyable to watch,” said Lang.
