Limerick students bring fire safety message into the home

LIMERICK, Ireland - Nov. 25, 2013 - PRLog -- Scoil Íde in Corbally has become the latest Limerick primary school to participate in a fire safety awareness course provided by Limerick City Fire and Rescue Service.

The information session for third class students forms part of an annual programme entitled ‘Safety Team’, which is designed to teach children to educate their families about Fire Safety and about protecting homes and communities from fire.

During the coming weeks, every Third Class pupil in the City’s primary schools will be presented with a ‘Home Safety Team’ pack while receiving a home fire safety lesson from fire crews.

"The 'Safety Team’ pack includes collector cards, a board game, door hanger, escape route stickers, word search puzzle and a home safety check sheet, all highlighting the importance of smoke detectors, home fire prevention and having an escape plan for the home.

Commenting on the ‘Safety Team’ Programme, Michael Ryan, Chief Fire Officer, Limerick City & County Fire and Rescue Service said: “Schoolchildren are expected, as part of their homework, to interact with their families on the elements of the programme. Each child is provided with a Home Safety Check Sheet, which must be filled out by a family member in the home. The completed Sheet is evidence of the key fire safety message reaching inside the home and is also a valuable resource for statistical purposes. This interaction puts the problem and the solution together in the same place at the same time, making it more likely that any fire safety problems will be successfully addressed in the future.”

Speaking following the presentation of Home Safety Certificates to Ms Downey’s third class pupils at Scoil Ide National School, Mr. Ryan stated: “It's fantastic to see children learning about an important subject like fire safety in such a lively and enjoyable way. The 'Safety Team' packs are great, really age appropriate, full of colour, with lots of innovative things to do for all the family. It's vital that parents encourage discussion on fire safety as I'm sure they'll learn loads from the boys and girls after this lesson. We need to put as much in place as is possible to keep our homes safe from the dangers of fire.”

"Approximately 50 people die every year from fire in this country and more than 1000 attend casualty units with burns and scald related injuries. With only a small few exceptions, these fires occur in their own homes. It is therefore essential that the fire safety messages of this project find their way to the pupils’ home environment. It is hoped that the home safety check list will encourage discussion around fire safety in the home,” Mr. Ryan concluded.

Any Primary School within Limerick City that has not received contact from the Fire Service regarding the Third Class program is asked to contact Limerick City Fire & Rescue Service on 061-316107 or fireoff@limerickcity.ie to arrange the presentation.