NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY SOUDA BAY, Greece (October 13, 2023) Firefighters from Naval Support Activity (NSA) Souda Bay, Fire and Emergency Services (F&ES), visited the Mavromataki-Mitera private school and Theodoropoulos International School in Chania, Greece, to share fire prevention tips during Fire Prevention Week, October 10 and 13, 2023, respectively. During the visits, firefighters taught children how to react in the event of a fire, demonstrated the functions of firefighting equipment and answered students’ questions about fire safety.
“I consider my interactions with the next generation to be one of the most important (non-emergency) things we do,” said NSA Souda Bay F&ES Fire Captain Matt Labrise. “When we go to schools, I show (students) all the fire protection equipment they have in their classrooms and in their hallways. We also try to include lots of interaction in our programs. Yes, we appreciate their questions and stories. We can dress in outfits. We can even do science experiments involving smoke, fire, and pressurized water! Who better than professionals to satisfy these curiosities in complete safety?
Labrise said his goal with these outreach activities is to present information in a new, fun and useful way.
“This year’s theme is specifically about culinary emergencies,” Labrise added. “We demonstrated and discussed the fire’s immense need for oxygen and how smothering a kitchen fire is a very effective extinguishing technique. This can be accomplished as simply as closing the kitchen door. oven or putting a lid on a pan to deprive a fire of oxygen. It’s important to understand that kitchen safety starts with you!”
Soula Galanakis, a teacher at Theodoropoulos International School, was very impressed by the valuable fire safety tips shared by the firefighters.
“Today we had the honor of receiving a visit from the American firefighters from (NSA Souda Bay),” Galanakis said. “They talked to us about fire safety in the kitchen and showed us lots of practical experiments. The kids really loved it, especially the visit from Sparky the fire dog. It was a very educational visit to raise everyone’s awareness of fire safety. fire safety,” she said. added.
During the outreach, one of the firefighters dressed up as Sparky the Fire Dog, the mascot of the National Fire Prevention Association.
Kostas Manolakis, director of the Mavromataki-Mitera private school, emphasized that fire prevention measures are very important and students should be reminded of them every year.
“It is important to be able to protect yourself in the event of a fire and especially to be able to prevent fires,” Manolakis said. “The visit from the Souda Bay NSA firefighters, especially Sparky the fire dog, allowed our students to overcome their fear of fire and I also appreciate the work of the firefighters because they are the ones who will protect us in the event of a fire. hazard.
NSA Souda Bay F&ES firefighter Michalis Tsikoudakis noted that this was the first time he had taught fire safety to children.
“It was an amazing experience for me to see how interested the kids were in all the safety tips we showed today,” Tsikoudakis said. “I really want to do it again in the future.”
Michael King, Firefighter and Emergency Medical Services Technician, NSA Souda Bay F&ES, highlighted the importance of public perception of firefighters.
“Kids need to know that we’re not scary people coming to your house, we’re here to help you,” King said. “Our goal is to show you what we do, what we wear and we will provide you with all the valuable information you need to be safe.
The children demonstrated their excitement at interacting with the firefighters and Sparky the Fire Dog by clapping and participating in the presentation.
NSA Souda Bay is a shore-based operational installation that enables and supports U.S., allied, coalition, and partner nation forces to preserve security and stability in the European, African, and Central Command areas of responsibility. For more information, visit us at www.cnic.navy.mil/SoudaBay or find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NSASoudaBay.