Burton Fire District teaches fire safety to elementary students

SEABROOK, S.C. (WSAV)—Fire safety is crucial for everyone, but teaching young children to recognize and respond to an emergency comes with a challenge.

The Burton Fire Department (BFD) visited Davis Elementary to provide students with essential tips on what to do in case of a fire on Thursday.

This visit is part of the “First Impressions” program, a four-day fire safety introduction designed for Pre-K through first-grade students. The program aims to create lasting, valuable impressions on young children as they begin to learn about fire safety.

Dan Byrne, Assistant Fire Chief for the BFD, has spent years perfecting the balance between delivering potentially “scary” information and making the learning experience fun for kids.

“Every day, they get what we call firefighter homework,” Byrne said. “On the first day, they had to go home and talk with their adults about where the family meeting place is, and they wrote it down. The second day, they learned how to test their smoke alarm by making it ‘bark’ like a puppy…This homework encourages them to interact with their parents and reinforce the lessons they’re learning in school.”

Assistant Principal of Davis Elementary, Shelley Krebs, expressed her enthusiasm for the program and how much the students have absorbed.

“They were super excited today,” Krebs said. “Dan and his team have been here for the last two days, and the kids were thrilled to see them again today. He makes it a game…and that really helps the kids internalize and understand the message.”

While Byrne and his team have made a lasting impact on the students, he emphasizes the importance of carrying these lessons home.

“Getting parents and students talking about what they learned is crucial,” Byrne said. “We can teach them about smoke alarms all day, but if they go home and the parents ignore the smoke alarm, it erases everything we’ve done this week.”

Byrne reminds parents that they, too, need to have a fire safety plan. If you need smoke alarms or assistance with fire safety at home, you can contact the Burton Fire District for support.