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Fire Prevention for League City
Fire Prevention for League City
Each October the fire fighters of League City volunteer their time and effort to teach, instruct, and demonstrate how to prevent fires. League City Fire Department own a state of the art trailer called the smoke house. Every year this trailer is taken to every elementary school in League City. The volunteers take vacation days and time off from their 40 hour job to teach the children in elementary how to escape a fire if they had one in their home.

Teaching the Children
The day begins in the early morning getting all the hand outs and pamphlets ready for the hundreds of children that will flow through the smoke house. First the children are asked to sit on chairs outside the smoke house and a fire fighter talks to them about safety. While talking about safety another firefighter is putting on his fire fighting gear.

The firefighters of League City want the children to hear and see what we look like with all the gear on and what we sound like speaking through our breathing mask. We don’t want them to be afraid of us if by chance they are trapped in their home and a firefighter has to come and rescue them.

The children are asked if they have a meeting place to meet if by chance they smell smoke or see fire inside their home. This is very important so that when firefighters arrive they will know if everyone is out of the house. Most common meeting places are at the mail box in front of the house. They are taught that if they can’t get down the hall or out of their room they are to stay by a window and do not crawl under you bed or hide in your closet. This concludes a small amount of what is taught your children before they enter the smoke house.

Inside the Smoke House

Once inside the smoke house the children are amazed that is it a small house complete with living room, kitchen, and stairs up to a small bed room. The firefighter begins with a walk around the kitchen area. He or she tells the children how not to get burned around pots and pans that may have the handle sticking out from the stove. Also while in the kitchen they discuss the dangers of chemicals under the sink.

The firefighter demonstrates the sound of a smoke alarm and asks if their parents have one in their kitchen area. Last but most important is the firefighters ask if their parents have fire extinguishers near the kitchen area. We stress if they say no that they encourage their parents to go to the local hardware store and pick up one. Most home owners can put out a small fire before it becomes a big fire with a small fire extinguisher.

Touring the Smokehouse
After they finish the tour of the kitchen the firefighter takes the children up the small stairs to the bed room. The children are asked to sit against the wall of the bed room while a volunteer lies on the bed to demonstrate what to do if they see smoke. The children are taught that they are not to stand up, but to roll out of bed and crawl to the door. They touch the door to see if it is hot. Inside the bedroom door of the trailer is a heater panel that actually makes the door hot.

Then they are taught that if the door is hot do not open the door because there is fire and smoke on the other side. Instead of going out the door the children are then taught to crawl to their window and open it and escape out the back of the smoke house. On the back of the smoke house is a small balcony with stairs that will take them to safety. These is life saving instructions that they will remember all their lives.

Once the children exit the stairs they are given little plastic fire hats several brochures for their parents to read and fire prevention coloring books.

Parents let your children know that the smoke house will be at their school during the month of October. When they come home with all the handouts please sit down and discuss the common meeting place and what to do in case of a fire.

Help keep taxes low; join the Fire Department. Call the Fire Department for more information at 281-554-1465.