SUNDERLAND — A group of about 10 parents and their children sat in a semicircle around Fire Prevention Officer Meaghan Ahearn about 11 a.m. Friday in the Sunderland Public Library as she read aloud from “The Firefighters,” by Sue Whiting.
“It starts the kids young,” Ahearn said after the book reading, while leading the group to a parked fire engine outside. “This gives us a different audience, as far as kids who aren’t in the schools. It’s never too early to start.”
The event was held during Fire Prevention Week.
Earlier, Katherine Hand, the library director, explained that fire prevention book-reading is part of the library’s weekly “story time,” which is intended to introduce children to unusual and interesting topics they might not encounter elsewhere. “It’s not often we have a fire truck here, so this is exciting!”
Hand said the library is a good place to discuss fire prevention because it’s “kind of a heavy subject, in a fun, lighthearted setting.”
Outside at the fire engine, the children donned plastic fire helmets, opened up equipment doors and had a chance to see what kind of gear town firefighters use. Preschooler Kaden Clark, who was wearing a bright orange T-shirt and a black fire helmet, clambered up into the cab and imagined he was racing off to a fire.
“(It’s about) knowing who the real heroes are,” said Jayshree Krishnan, who brought her son, Divyesh, to the event. Krishnan said their family just moved to the area from California, where they lived for 11 years.
“We know how bad the danger is. Often, we would hear fire alarms blaring,” Krishnan continued, describing destruction caused by fire as “instantaneous.”
While the event was geared toward fun, Ahearn shared serious tips with the children, including “always get out of the building when the smoke detector goes off,” and change the batteries and check the expiration date on smoke detectors.