Three hundred and nine West Carrollton elementary students worked with their families to test their home smoke detectors during the Fire Department’s Fire Safety Week in mid-October.
Four of those students, Harold Schnell Elementary students Leah Pope and Jackson Boehmer and Harry Russell Elementary students Abbey Sharkey and Caylee Benning, were selected to receive breakfast at Station 56 Firehouse and get a ride to school on a firetruck on Friday, Nov. 2.
In addition to the students who submitted the proof that they checked their detectors, 16 of those children took advantage of the fire department’s promise to supply and install a smoke detector in their home for free, said Josh Whitehead, firefighter-paramedic, who coordinates the program.
During this year’s Fire Safety Week, fire department crew members conducted presentations in the schools – addressing the common causes of residential fires and how to plan a safe escape plan.
Data shows that in 2017, the West Carrollton Fire Department responded to 20 building fires. Of these fires, approximately 35 percent of these homes had no working smoke detectors, according to Whitehead.
“This year, we highlighted the importance of working smoke detectors, and the children in the West Carrollton school district really helped us with our goal of getting working smoke detectors in every home.”
Whitehead said that this year’s participation level far exceeds last year’s- which was 123 students, and also a record over previous years.
The Nov. 2 breakfast will start at 7 a.m. at Fire Station 56, located at 125 W. Central Ave. The fire engine that takes the students to school will arrive at 8:30 a.m. at Harold Schnell Elementary, 5995 Student St., and 9 a.m. for Harry Russell Elementary, 123 Elementary Dr.
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For more information, call West Carrollton Fire Department at (937) 847-4645.