On Tuesday, October 5th, the Acushnet Fire Department came and did a Fire Saftey presentation for our 2nd graders.

The students learned much and had fun with Firefighters Andy and Mike and Firefighter-in-Training Doug.

Firefighter Andy discussed the importance of smoke detectors in our houses. He explained that every child should have a planned evacuation route and meeting place ouside with their family.	The students had the opportunity to practice the Stop, Drop, and Roll technique.
Firefighter Andy showed us what to do if our clothes catch on fire and someone is nearby to help. Above, Sam helped throw a jacket on Miranda to help put out the fire on her clothing.	The firefighters showed us all the protective gear they have to wear to keep safe in a fire. We learned that in fire school, they have to put all their gear on in 30 seconds to pass the test. Wow, that's fast!
Here are the firefighters dressed in all their gear. They explained to the children that although they may look scary and sound like "Darth Vader", they are there to help and that the children should never hide in their house when there is a fire.	Firefighter Mike is doing a dance and stop his airtank alarm from going off. We learned that their airtanks are equipped with alarms, and if there is no movement for a certain amount of time, the alarm will begin to sound until the firefighter moves. This is a safety measure in the event that a firefighter is down and needs to be rescued. The alarm gets louder and louder until it is a terrible, shreiking sound. Many of us had to block our ears!
Some of the children got the opprtunity to try on the air mask and breathe through it. Above, Isabel is trying out the air mask.	The firefighters showed us how they conduct a search and rescue technique in a fire. They stay low to the ground and always go in pairs. The first firefighter sweeps the floor with his hand or tool. The second firefighter always stays connected to the first firefighter during their search. They successfully located the 2 students that were placed around the gym.
A highlight of the visit was checking out the fire engine. We got to see in all the compartments of the truck and were shown the jaws of life. Every child got to climb through the cab and were surprised by how small that area was.	Thank you to everyone from the Acushnet Fire Department for making this such a memorable and important learning experience!