The Flomaton Fire Department visited Flomaton Elementary School and the Flomaton First Baptist Church Daycare to teach kids what to do in case they encounter fire as part of the Fire Prevention Week Program.
“We teach the kids to 'stop, drop and roll' to protect themselves and others if they find themselves in a dangerous situation or on fire,” said Stanton. “We tell them there will be noises and a flashlight moving around, but to never hide from a fireman. We tell them not to be afraid, that that fire responder is your friend, they are coming to get you out. We tell them to get as low as possible and try to crawl until help arrives.”
Stanton says the program is a very effective way to help children identify uniformed firemen and not be afraid to approach them in emergency situations and what to do before help arrives.
“The kids get to see what a fully-uniformed firefighter looks like and not be scared,” said Stanton.
He said they also tell kids the importance of establishing a place in the yard to meet with other family members and to never, ever go back inside a burning house, but leave it for the fire responders, as they have equipment that helps them to do that.
Stanton said this year is his 33rd year of fire prevention at Flomaton Elementary School and Flomaton First Baptist Church. Matt Arrington Construction has sponsored it for 12 years, purchasing firehats, badges, stickers and other Fire Prevention-related things to hand out to students.
Smokey the Bear or Sparky the Fire Dog will accompany the firemen and this year, Sparky the Fire Dog came to visit. Sparky was borrowed from the Brewton Fire Department.
