On Wednesday morning, Jason the community fire officer came from Scarborough to give an assembly on house fires and fire safety. He began by asking the students for examples for the kind of jobs a fire officer would have to do, as they don’t spend their entire career putting out fires. Many people raised their hands and gave examples such as; house fires, rescuing cats stuck up trees, bush fires and, in rare occasions, helping people remove padlocks from their ears!
He then showed us a short video of a living room built in a warehouse, and what happens if you leave a smouldering cigarette on a sofa cushion – whether intentionally or accidentally. We were all shocked at how quickly the sofa lit up in flames and at how the extreme temperatures caused objects at the other end of the room to catch fire without contact with another flame.
The total time it took for the whole room to be engulfed by flames was 3 minutes and 18 seconds – barely any time at all. Jason was very informative and gave us a lot of great tips and instructions on what to do if you are trapped in a house fire or if your smoke alarms go off. Even small things can help save your life, such as closing all the doors in the house before you go to bed and not leaving your phone to charge overnight.
Meghan Chandler (Year 11)
