Columbia County locals smiled from ear-to-ear on Saturday morning while exploring this year’s Public Safety and Preparedness Fair at the Evans Towne Center.
From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., families enjoyed food trucks, live music and free rides while interacting with various county emergency services and departments.
Dozens of vendors participated in the third annual event, including: the Coast Guard Auxiliary, Augusta University’s Air Care Team, Gold Cross EMS, Grovetown Public Safety, the Department of Natural Resources, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office and many more.
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Wowing children and parents, Augusta University’s Air Care Team displayed a helicopter and allowed children to explore the vehicle’s interior, whilst Grovetown Public Safety brought a rollover demonstrator to educate families on the dangers one can sustain in a car accident.
Providing parents with an emergency resource, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office Auxiliary provided free child ID services by marking minors fingerprints on an official paper that parents were able to take home.
“We came out so parents can have these if they ever need them. No one ever wants to have to use them, but it can be helpful if there’s ever any sort of tragedy,” said Christal Senn, an auxiliary volunteer. “People’s fingerprints never change, so even if something happens to them as an adult this can come in handy.”
To Senn, the fair allowed community members to have a positive experience with several emergency personnel, which gave everyone a chance to develop a more meaningful relationship.
“It encourages children not to be scared of the police … so if they ever needed one they can approach them,” she said. “The more officers are out here and the more children see them interacting with parents too, the less scared they’ll hopefully be.”
Senn also said the outdoor event promoted neighborly socialization and gave families an opportunity to enjoy the beautiful, sunny day.
“So many people just stay in front of the T.V. I mean we are living in the age of information, where we have everything at our fingerprints, and we don’t interact with anyone anymore,” she said. “But this not only gets us involved, but also the families, so it’s just all around good.”
Inviting children to explore the inside of a working ambulance, Gold Cross EMS Chief Operating Officer John Smith said he also felt it was imperative for children to interact with emergency personnel and become familiar with their vehicles.
“We want people to see what public safety is all about … people don’t call us when it’s a good day,” he said. “So it’s good for children to get inside the ambulance, so they are not scared if they ever need to ride in one. They get to play and touch all the equipment and just have a good time.”
With lights and sirens flashing in severe situations, Smith said it was easy to see why unfamiliarized children could become easily frightened by the enormous vehicles.
“It can be a little unsettling for them, and if they are the ones that are sick they don’t want to be separated from mom and dad,” he said. “It just gives them a level of comfort to know us.”
From past years, Smith said he was glad to see the event expand more every year, and he hoped the booming fair encouraged attending minors to gain an interest in the field.
“I hope they want to be part of this,” he said.
Each stop at the fair taught locals about a different safety aspect or how to be prepared for a natural disaster, such as gathering necessary supplies in case of an intense hurricane.
Pierce Larkin, a meteorologist for the U.S. National Weather Service in Columbia, S.C., said his organization wanted to share important information about home emergency plans, and understanding what to avoid in risky situations.
“It’s one of my passions to inform people on what to do when a warning is issued and how to seek shelter,” he said. “These are split second decisions that people are making … so knowing exactly what to and where to go is critical.”
With sometimes minutes to spare in escaping a natural disaster, Larkin said the public needed to be aware – ahead of time – of preventative measures and crucial situations to avoid.
“Nobody really knows that 12 inches of moving water can sweep a vehicle off of its tires, if you drive across a flooded roadway,” he said. “So, we’re really trying to prevent weather related fatalities.”
From his experience, Larkin said it is common for citizens to be fed misinformation on weather emergencies or to severely underestimate the danger of continuing to drive.
“Tornadoes, for example, people think when they’re driving they should go to an underpass, and that’s actually not safe at all. That’s a common myth,” Larkin said. “It actually funnels the wind and makes it a very unsafe place to be.”
However, Larkin said such events like the safety and preparedness fair allow professionals to meet the public and urge them on the significance of basic preparedness.
Fellow emergency professional Larry Wiggins, a flotilla staff officer for vessel examinations with the Coast Guard Auxiliary, said it is common for individuals to underestimate the danger of drowning – no matter one’s swimming ability.
“We’re trying to remind the public to boat safely and always wear a life jacket,” he said. “Unforeseen things can happen on the water in an instant, and if people would wear life jackets it would reduce drowning deaths nationwide by 75%.”
According to Wiggins, even the best swimmer is susceptible to sudden cramps and potential drowning.
“I’ve known really great swimmers to drown … and in all cases they weren’t wearing life jackets,” he said. “That’s why it’s state law that children under 15 must wear life jackets unless they are inside the interior of a houseboat.”
Amidst the several fun activities, rides, facepainting and food, first time attendee Megan Hix said she thought the event provided a wonderful and educational time for families.
“It’s good to teach our kids about this stuff in a hands-on way so that they can see everything,” she said.
Another attendee Kyle Odom said he was surprised with the enormous size of the fair and was glad to know so many in the county cared enough to actively try and inform the public about various safety precautions and measures.
“I did not expect it to be this big, and we learned a lot about the fire department and the police department,” he said. “It gave us a good feeling for how welcoming they are too.”
For those who have never participated in any of the county’s emergency safety and preparedness fairs, Odom said he highly recommends families attending at least once to meet local emergency workers.
“Definitely come – you learn so much,” he said.
