Robert Craddick, a fire inspector with the Kaua‘i Fire Department, was impressed last weekend with the amount of knowledge children had about fire safety.
He was one of several community volunteers who joined The Home Depot to present a program coinciding with the National Fire Prevention Week celebration which runs through Saturday.
“We were supposed to start visiting the elementary schools, but this is inter-session week, so I think everything was pushed back one week,” Craddick said. “The fire crews will go out starting next week when school resumes.”
During the visits, students have an opportunity to meet Sparky, the fire department’s mascot, as well as receive interactive fire safety guides, Craddick said.
On some occasions, students are even allowed to handle the fire hose with the assistance of fire fighters.
“It’s amazing how much information the children retain,” Craddick said. “We go back each year, and the children remember a lot of the information we presented the previous year.”
Craddick said the National Fire Prevention Week observance has its roots in the Great Chicago Fire which happened Oct. 8, 1871.
That tragedy claimed the lives of some 300 people, left 100,000 homeless and destroyed more than 17,000 structures, according to a fire safety Web site. The blaze sped across more than 2,000 acres in 27 hours.
Although no specific cause of the fire has been determined, one legend surrounding the tragedy has Mrs. O’Leary’s cow kicking over a lamp to set the O’Leary barn on fire and triggering the spectacular blaze.
In observance of the 40th anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire, the Fire Marshals Association of North America decided the fire should be observed, not with festivities, but in a way that would keep the public informed about the importance of fire prevention.
That led to President Calvin Coolidge proclaiming the first National Fire Prevention week in 1925, noting that in 1924, more than 15,000 lives were lost to fire in the United States.
In addition to the various fire departments visiting elementary schools, the fire stations receive visits from pre-schools, nurseries and other learning institutions where their students are also afforded the same fire safety opportunities.
For Saturday’s event, The Home Depot arranged to have displays of the various types of fire prevention devices and supplies it stocks so customers could see at a glance what is available for them to prevent home fires, the theme of this year’s national observance.
But it did not stop there as Cheryl Kuriki, one of The Home Depot coordinators, arranged to have the monthly Kyds Workshop program coincide with the weekend program.
“It just happened that this program coincided with fire prevention,” Kuriki said. “There will be other fire prevention programs throughout the month, but this one is for the children and we have fire engine whistle kits they can construct and take with them along with an orange apron.”
Expanding to go beyond just fire safety, other agencies participating in the program included the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary where Jim Jung spearheaded a display centering around marine debris and the biodegradable characteristics of common debris.
The Civil Defense and American Red Cross worked with a display of a basic emergency survival kit, and members of the Kaua‘i Radio Club had a display on hand which allowed communication during times of no electricity.
Bob Anderson, one of the radio club members, was honored as the American Red Cross Kaua‘i Volunteer of the Year last week during a special program on O‘ahu, said Tad Miura Jr., one of the radio club members on hand.
Anderson, who also works with the American Red Cross, was busy working with children, connecting with other radio operators and allowing the children to have conversations with them using equipment powered entirely by batteries.
Kuriki said the Kyds Workshop is a monthly feature of The Home Depot designed for children ages 5 to 12. The workshops are free “How-To Clinics” and meet from 9 a.m. to noon.
Kathryn Gallagher, The Home Depot communications officer from California, said the projects are usually offered by the corporate office with the next two projects probably centering around the approaching holiday season.
The workshops are geared to teach children do-it-yourself skills and tool safety while helping to instill a sense of accomplishment. An added benefit is that this fun time allows for quality one-on-one time between adults and children.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com
