Tamaqua Elementary students participated in an interactive fire prevention program on Friday.

All four fire companies, which represent Tamaqua, were on site at the school’s campus to teach, explain and take questions from students throughout the day.

Chris Hadesty, of the American Home Fire Co. No. 1, is the Fire and Life Safety educator. Hadesty has 30 years under his belt with the American Hose and has been teaching for 25 of them.

“We do it annually, sometimes in October,” Hadesty said. “Last year, because of COVID, we did it in May, but we wanted to get back on schedule.”

On Friday, students participated in a mock smoking house drill, which received much positive feedback. Each grade level had 45 minutes of learning with the Tamaqua firefighters.

“It teaches them to stay low and crawl out of the house if it’s on fire,” Hadesty added.

“We also meet in the gym, do a review and call 911. And then we go outside and the students have a chance to tour the apparatus and have a chance to meet the firefighters. We have a three-year program rotation that some kids get at least twice.”

But the kids didn’t leave for the weekend without a bit of homework.

“As early as you can start them, the better off. When they’re young like this, they’re sponges - they absorb it all. The more we get this repetition in their heads, and send them home to tell mom and dad to change their batteries in the smoke alarms and to have an escape plan ready. And these kids are going home and they’re doing it.”

Hadesty and the Tamaqua crews asked students about fire detectors at home.

“Some of them say I got one, some of them say none - and some of them don’t put their hand up. It’s important to try to get through to them how important that little piece of plastic is and how important it is to change the battery.”

Hadesty said fire and safety education at the elementary level is critical, and added that Tamaqua has a low fire loss.

“Because we do such an aggressive prevention program. I kind of attribute a part of that to it anyway,” he added.

Hadesty, a Tamaqua native, has been teaching fire safety for a long time, and is excited to get back on track to instruct the youth.

“Some of them, I taught their parents, and now, I’m teaching their kids.”