Watertown Firefighters visited every elementary school this year and also installed fire alarms for seniors around town with the help of the fire safety grants.
In January the Watertown Fire Department received $5,407 in Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) grant and $2,813 in Senior SAFE grant.
“We applied for the grant and got it in 2017,” said Capt. Ryan Nicholson, the WFD’s S.A.F.E and Senior SAFE Program Coordinator. “It was the first time we got it in about 10 years.”
In the Spring, S.A.F.E. Educators Firefighter Jeffrey Pugliese Jr. and Firefighter Shane Gleason visited every third grade classroom at each of Watertown’s three elementary schools. During that visit students learned about dialing 9-1-1, “Stop, Drop and Roll”, burn prevention, and treatment and safety around smoking materials.
This fall, S.A.F.E. returned to the classroom. Each third grade class learned about home escape planning, recognizing two ways out of every room, the importance of working smoke alarms, and crawling low under smoke. In addition, the SAFE program expanded this fall to include each fifth grade classroom in the district.
“Going forward we feel that providing students with fire education in third grade and then again in fifth grade will help to satisfy our goal of leaving a lasting positive impression on Watertown’s students with hopes of raising a generation of fire safe individuals,” Nicholson said in an announcement.
The program wouldn’t be possible without a strong partnership with the School Department.
“Dr. Dede Galdston, Superintendant of Schools, has been open to and supportive of the program since her arrival in Watertown, and we thank her for her continued support,” Galdston said.
Each elementary school principal also plays a key role in organizing our visits and should be recognized for their efforts, Nicholson said. Finally, classroom teachers know their students the best and are a huge help in providing an atmosphere that is ideal for learning.
The Senior SAFE grant continues with monthly visits to the Senior Center by Capt. Nicholson. The visits provide those in attendance a chance to ask any fire and life safety questions they may have or learn something new about the Fire Department’s services and operations.
The visits are coupled with a smoke and carbon monoxide alarm installation program for those seniors in need.
Nicholson said the program took off thanks to some help from Watertown Cable.
“When (Watertown Cable’s) Dan Hogan’s PSA went on TV, the program blew up,” Nicholson said. “It’s been a very popular program.”
Capt. Nicholson will visit homes to install the devices where necessary and discuss possible ways to make their home safer.
“We can look for tripping hazards in their home, or to see if they are storing something too close to the boiler,” Nicholson said, giving some examples. “It is a one-on-one opportunity for them to talk to us. Sometimes people don’t feel comfortable asking questions in a group setting.”
The program also offers lock boxes to seniors who are living alone. If the person were to be unable to reach the door to let the fire department in incase of an emergency, a key will be available in the lockbox for quick and easy access. So far in 2018, Nicholson installed nearly 200 devices. Over the two years the program has existed, over 320 smoke alarms, CO alarms, and lock boxes have been installed.
“Without the continued support and assistance from the Watertown Senior Center this program wouldn’t be possible,” Nicholson said. “Anne-Marie Gagnon, Senior Center Director, and her staff do an amazing job advertising and supporting the program and we thank them for their partnership.”
Looking forward, the Watertown Fire Department has again applied for the S.A.F.E. and Senior SAFE grants.
“We hope to continue our efforts to target our most at risk populations, children and seniors, with fire and life safety education and programs in 2019,” Nicholson said.