BELVEDERE – Each year during National Fire Prevention Week, Belvedere Fire Department hosts its annual open house event. The department’s 36th annual open house was held Saturday.
National Fire Prevention Week is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. It was started in 1922 by the National Fire Protection Association to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire in 1871.
During National Fire Prevention Week, Belvedere firefighters visit local schools and daycare centers to teach fire safety plus they hold the open house.
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“Always the Saturday of National Fire Prevention Week, we have our open house inviting all grammar kids we have and putting it out in the community to please come,” said Chad Hyler, Belvedere Fire Department Chief. “Other than COVID, this a lifelong thing that is almost 40 years going.”
Many different Belvedere Fire Department personnel attended the event and helped teach different aspects of fire safety, including a two-story smoke house demonstration. This demonstration involved the kids going inside a camper home with a firefighter who helps teach the kids an escape plan if a fire occurs.
Belvedere Fire Department executed the demonstration with a fog machine that would cause the fire alarm inside to siren and the kids would then escape safely.
According to Belvedere firefighter Jeremiah Bozeman, the demonstration also lets the kids build a relationship with the emergency responders.
“We do this to get them to get them in the safety mindset, but also to make sure there not afraid of us if something does happen and we have to come in and they know that we are here to help,” Bozeman said.
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Hyler agreed with Bozeman and said understanding what a firefighter does is important for the kids, so they know that they are there to help.
“We don’t want the firefighter to be the scary person in that situation, we want them to know that this person is coming to save your life,” Hyler said. “We don’t want them hiding in the bed or in the closet. We want them under a window because that is where we’re going to come search for them.”
Along with the smoke house demonstration, the Belvedere Fire Department also let kids practice with fire extinguishers, go inside the emergency responders’ vehicles and learn many other important things about fire safety.
“We try to hopefully get the kids involved like we do all year long and this week to push the parents to check their smoke alarms and practice safety plans and those type things,” Hyler said. “This is our week to really punch it hard home and hopefully they think about are here.”
Shepeard Community Blood Center, the Aiken County Hazmat Team, the Burn Center and others were also involved with the event.
According to Hyler, around 500 to 800 people have attended the open house each year, but he said it seemed more crowded on Saturday.
The fire department partnered with Warren Belvedere Baptist Church for its Fall Family Fest as well. The church became Warren Belvedere in January and partnered with the fire department to collaborate these two events.
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“I think this event has done a great job with being able to promote who we are and being able to encourage the partnership with the Belvedere Fire Department,” said Susan Saldivar, Children’s Director at Warren Belvedere Baptist Church. “I feel like it is very important that the kids understand that God loves them and understands what to do in order to be safe if anything were to happen.”
Chris Rickerson is a staff reporter covering Columbia County government and general assignment topics for The Augusta Press. Reach him at chris@theaugustapress.com.
