COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa. (KMTV) — October is National Fire Prevention Month. With the pandemic, the Council Bluffs Fire Department is getting creative when it comes to teaching safety.
"YouTube has been a great tool for us, so what we've done is, with all of the messages we send out when we go and do our presentations, we've kind of broken down into each individual session," Capt. Mike Godbout said.
Godbout said emphasizing the basics through YouTube is helpful.
"Practicing fire drills at home, smoke detectors, we've just broken them down, into short segments and that way it gives a platform for teachers that they can give out to the students," Godbout said.
Godbout admits this avenue is not something his Department is accustomed to.
"For a lot of guys it's really going out of their comfort zone, it's not too bad for me, a long time ago, I was a teacher, I have some experience being behind the camera, for a lot of guys, they are uncomfortable with it, but again, they still want to get the message out," Godbout said.
But for his team, it's worth the effort to re-emphasize important information.
"The most important lesson is practicing fire drills at home, everyone does it at schools, we tell them how safe schools are and so it's important they do it at home, most fires happen at home, not always," Godbout said.
Ultimately, it's an opportunity for families to engage in important topics.
"Fire Prevention Month started with a fire in Chicago over 150 years ago. It's still present and even though times have changed, fires have changed, there's still that same danger," Godbout said.
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