News

Firehouse teaches prevention, safety

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Matthew Hubby
  • 436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  Firehouses around the nation strove to educate the public on the importance of fire safety during Fire Prevention Week Oct. 8-15. The Dover Air Force Base, Del., firehouse did their part by educating Team Dover members and their families.

The firefighters at Dover AFB had one goal: to teach people what they can do to protect their family from fire, including changing smoke alarm batteries and evacuation plans in case of a home fire. They also passed out home-inspection charts for children to complete with their parents.

The Dover AFB firefighters also suited up in full gear to acclimate Team Dover children to what firefighters look like in action.

"Firefighters can be a bit intimidating," said Tech. Sgt. Heather Michaud, NCO in charge of fire prevention with the 436th Civil Engineer Squadron. "During a fire, the smoke alarms are going off, there's smoke and fire in the building, and it's hard to see. By exposing the children to the fully-geared firefighters in a safe environment, we can teach them to go to the firefighters instead of hiding from them."

There were many events the firehouse hosted this year including a fire muster, a softball game between the base security forces and the firehouse, a parade and an open house.

"We had a few obstacles to overcome to get these events going," said Michaud. "The weather didn't always cooperate with us, and about 33 percent of our people are currently deployed. However, we managed to pull together and get the job done."

The 436th Force Support Squadron returned this year as the reigning champs in the fire muster and swept all three fire muster events. The softball game, named 'Battle of the Badges' has a history of being dominated by the 436th Security Forces Squadron, this year was no different.

"The cops won the 'Battle of the Badges' again this year," said Michaud. "But we'll keep it up, there is always next year."

Perhaps the most important event of this year's Fire Prevention Week was the 60th birthday of Sparky the Fire Dog, the iconic fire-safety mascot. At a spry 420 dog-years old, Sparky shared his birthday cake with the youth of Dover AFB. The children even helped blow out the candles.

"Sparky is our 'dog'," said Michaud. "Kids can relate to him, and he's very family friendly. Smokey Bear spends a lot of time in the woods, but Sparky lives in the station with us. Kids ask for him all the time."

The firehouse also hosted a parade and open house Oct. 15. More than 20 vehicles from the base's local firefighting partners joined in the festivities. There was a competition between two local firehouses to see who could mount the best vehicle-extraction rescue, which is when firefighters must extract a person who is trapped in a vehicle that has been heavily damaged.

"This was our first time coming to an open house at Dover AFB," said Shannon Kelm, wife of Lt. Col. Charles Kelm, commander of the 436th CES. "It's great; the kids are having a fantastic time, and they love Sparky. It is great to see what the firehouse is doing to expose the kids to fire safety; we will definitely be coming back next year."