MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee firefighters made a trip to Townsend Street School on Monday to get the first, second and third graders fired up about fire safety.
Fire Chief Aaron Lipski told students his crews are busy fighting fires around the city and need help to prevent fires from starting in the first place.
"We do really, really good work with the Milwaukee Fire Department coming out with fire trucks when stuff is on fire, or if you're in a car accident. We do really good work in that way. But we honestly would rather not have to come to any more fires where you folks might be stuck inside," Lipski told the students.
Chief Lipski encouraged kids to be careful with anything that could start a fire in their homes like matches, lighters, the oven or a space heater. He also encouraged kids and their families to make sure there is a working smoke detector in their homes and to come up with a fire escape plan in case of an emergency.
Students got to test put their fire safety skills in the Survive Alive mobile home. Students pretended to be asleep when a fire alarm went off, firefighters then instructed them through checking for fire and making their escape out through a window.
Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Keith Posley said activities like this are crucial for students' all-around education.
"As superintendent of schools, I'm charged with ensuring that our children are not only educated in the classroom, but also have the tools they need to stay safe in case of emergency at home or at school," Posley said.
Milwaukee Fire has several other events planned for Fire Prevention week including:
- Oct. 5 from 1-3pm: MFD members at station 11 will go door to door in a neighborhood checking for working smoke detectors and installing new alarms as necessary.
- Oct. 6 from 11am-noon: Firefighter Memorial program
- Oct. 7 from 1-3pm: MFD members at station 37 will go door to door in a neighborhood checking for working smoke detectors and installing new alarms as necessary.
- Oct 7 at 7pm: Meritorious Service Awards Program
- Oct. 8 from 11:30am-1:30pm: Poster-to-Billboard contest winners receive lunch with an MFD fire chief.
