Fire education program thrives in Lynn schools

LYNN – When the 2014-15 school year ends in June, it will mark the completion of the 20th year of the Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) program, an initiative that provides resources to local fire departments to conduct fire and life-safety education programs in schools.The S.A.F.E. program, which is funded through the state fire marshal’s office, has been particularly successful in Lynn, where the fire department has developed a solid working relationship with Lynn Public Schools. Under the direction of Lt. Israel Gonzalez, members of the LFD fire prevention staff visit every third grade classroom in the city and present a six-week course that deals with fire prevention and survival, as well as the dangers of tobacco.Gonzalez said the success of the program can be attributed to the willingness of Superintendent of Schools Dr. Catherine C. Latham to open classrooms to firefighters.”The superintendent has always been kind enough to let us get into the schools and teach kids how they can keep their families safe,” Gonzalez said. “The schools play an enormous role in fire prevention. The kids retain the info and bring it home to their families.”To illustrate the effectiveness of the S.A.F.E. initiative statewide, in 1994 there were 25 fire deaths of children under age 18. From 2010 to 2013, there were a total of five such fatalities combined. Since the start of the S.A.F.E. program, the average number of annual fire deaths of children under 18 has decreased by 72 percent.Last year, the Lynn Fire Department, through the S.A.F.E. program, developed a poster contest in which students in grades K-12 were invited to draw a poster depicting the theme “Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives, Test Yours Every Month.” Thousands of entries were received, with nine winners selected – three at the elementary, middle and high school levels. Those students received an iPad. One overall winner was selected from each group and those posters were displayed on billboards in Wyoma Square last fall.”We were overwhelmed with the response to the contest,” Fire Chief James McDonald said. “It was amazing to see the hard work that went into the posters and the safety message portrayed in the artwork. We were thrilled that so many children brought their project home to work on with their families.’Latham said the fire department plays a valuable role in Lynn schools.”Not only do our students gain important information about preventing fires and surviving them if they occur, they share that information with their families,” she said. “Lessons learned about fire safety at a young age last a lifetime.”Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy echoed those sentiments. “We can be reasonably certain that the S.A.F.E. program has saved lives in our city over the years,” the mayor said. “We are grateful for the spirit of cooperation between the fire department and our schools.”Since the S.A.F.E. program began, more than 300 youth across the state have been recognized as Young Heroes for putting into practice fire and life safety lessons they learned in school. Locally, the most recent Young Hero was Victoria Pierro of Swampscott, a 6-year-old who alerted her family to a fire in their home on Dec. 2, allowing them all to get out safely.In 2009, Dylan Badger of Lynn earned Young Hero recognition for using a garden hose to extinguish a small fire at his father’s home.