RR youth learning all about being a firefighter

By Ken Johnston
Editor

Friday evenings have been a fun and a learning experience for 18 local youths between the ages of 10-13.
Rainy River town councillor and deputy fire-chief Ashley Stamler has come up with the Junior Firefighter Program. “I have seen it in other places but have redeveloped it to work here.”
Other programs tend to be geared towards older kids and are usually used as a recruitment tool for full time fire departments.
“Ours is a volunteer fire department so we wanted to show the kids that we all volunteer and do it because we love the community,” said Stamler.
The program began April 19th and runs every Friday evening for six weeks. The first two weeks they learned about fire safety in the home. “They were given homework assignments to check fire alarms and extinguishers at home. They also toured the fire hall and tried out firefighter gear.”
Stamler has been assisted by many members of the local department. “I try and get as many members out every Friday to help teach the kids.”
This past Friday the kids learned how to draw water from an external source; in this case the Rainy River, so that fires can be fought when there is no hydrants nearby.
This coming Friday Stamler hopes to burn some pallets and teach kids how to put a small fire out with an extinguisher and later this month lessons on auto-extrication with the Jaws of Life will be taught.
In late summer and early fall she hopes to offer a similar program for youths from ages 13-17 in hopes that some of them will want to join the fire dept. when they become adults.
Stamler was expecting less kids than she has in the program. “I did not want to turn anyone away and am very pleased with how it is going. We are showing them the cool factor but at the same time making fire fighting real for them.”