Mount Vernon Fire Department open house ignites excitement and learning

The Mount Vernon Fire Department opened its station to kids of all ages on Oct. 9.

The open house has been a staple in the community during fire prevention week the last few years, allowing residents the opportunity to see the firefighters and their equipment up close and personal.

“We did it for a while when I first got on station, then we took a little break from it,” said MVFD Chief Chad Christopher. “We’ve probably been holding this even for the last five or six years. It’s really been going good and strong for the last five or six years.”

The open house is an opportunity for the fire department to give kids an opportunity to observe, learn and even use the equipment. About 300 youths got the chance to climb into the fire trucks, learn about fire safety in the smoke trailer and use the fire hose to knock out a make-believe fire in a house.

“We borrowed the safety trailer from our good neighbors, Loudonville Fire. One of our firemen, Josh Buzzard, is the assistant chief for Loudonville, so the last couple of years we’ve borrowed their safety trailer,” Christopher said. “Kids get to go in, we’ve got a couple of our firefighters in there. The first section is one where you give a little safety talk. Then, it has the party smoke, the fake smoke, and the back is set up like a bedroom. They go in there with some smoke, and we talk about how to get out of your house, keeping the door shut. It’s a great educational piece.”

There were also plenty of games and food for the children and their parents to enjoy. Kids could spin a wheel and answer safety-related questions to earn prizes, chow down on hot dogs or popcorn, and talk with Sparky the Dog, the animated mascot of the Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Along with the state fire marshal’s office, representatives from the Mount Vernon Police Department, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and Knox Public Health, among others, were also part of the event. An AirEvac helicopter also landed at the station, giving everyone a chance to see it in action.

“We’ve got good partners we’ve added in. The police department comes down, the state fire marshal always likes to come to our event. We really appreciate them. The health department with the safe community,” Christopher said. “We’re trying to each year kind of grow it with some other partners in the community to make it more of an all-around event, even though it is Fire Prevention Week. We’ve tried to grow it into more of a community event.”