The men and women of Falcon Fire Protection District do more than handle emergencies ñ they also work to prevent them from happening in the first place. Firefighters visit local schools throughout the year to teach children about fire prevention and other safety topics.Firefighter Matt Gibbs coordinates community education efforts for FFPD. Gibbs is a former teacher, and his enthusiasm for teaching was evident as he described FFPDís educational programs. One program focuses on hundreds of second graders at schools within the FFPD, including Woodmen Hills, Meridian Ranch and Falcon Elementary. Gibbs said, ìWe just think thatís a good ageî for teaching kids about fire safety. ìWe talk about the dangers of matches and lighters. We talk about smoke alarms and what happens when they go ëbeepí at home versus what happens at the school. We talk about smoke, how it starts at the ceiling and goes down, so crawl low and go (to get out).îThe bi-monthly classroom visits cover more than fire prevention. FFPD uses lesson plans from Risk WatchÆ, a comprehensive injury prevention program developed by NFPA to teach children about motor vehicle safety, poisoning prevention and other safety topics. FFPD also participates in an annual bicycle rodeo, where children learn to be safe on their bikes.FFPD works with other schools and age groups, too. For example, firefighters and EMS personnel help teach CPR and emergency medical response for Falcon High Schoolís health and science programs.Children donít seem to forget the safety education they receive or the firefighters who taught them. Gibbs described how former second-graders will later get involved with other activities such as Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts. ìTheyíll say, ëI remember you from second grade or from the bike rodeos.íîFire prevention isnít just for kids, though. ìIt goes way beyond 8-year-olds and into fire code, and wildland fire prevention and mitigation,î Gibbs said. FFPD presents fire prevention to a variety of adult groups at recreation centers and through homeowners associations. Anyone interested in having FFPD present fire safety information to a group can call 495-4050 for more information.
