Montecito Firefighters teach preschoolers about fire safety

MONTECITO, Calif.- It's National Fire Prevention Week, and local firefighters are making sure the youngest members of the community know about fire safety.

Melody Delshad’s son is just 5 years old, but he already understands the importance of fire safety firsthand.

“Our son was just waking up and he heard a sound and got concerned and ran outside and saw huge flames on our deck, said Melody.

Bradley Delshad immediately ran to wake up his dad, who happens to be a firefighter.

“He said, ‘Dad, Dad, Dad There’s a fire.’ So if he hadn't woken up my husband, it would have spread and probably the whole place would have burned down. So Bradley's our little hero,” said Melody.  

On Tuesday, Bradley and his preschool peers got hands-on experience learning safety tips from the Montecito Fire Department.

Some kids were nervous beforehand, because they didn't fully understand the role of a firefighter.

“They think that the firemen might bring fire with them. That's what they told me this morning. The two year old said to me, 'I want to see the firemen, but I don't want to see the fire.' And I said, 'Oh, we're not going to see it. We're going to talk about what to do if we do see, fire,'” said YMCA Preschool Director Annie Fischer.

Another goal for the fire department is to make sure kids are familiar with what a firefighter looks and sounds like in full gear.

“They sort of sound like Darth Vader with their air mask on. And so it can be scary for a small child. But our hope is after this presentation, they no longer have that fear and they know when they see a firefighter, it's a good thing,” said Montecito Fire Department Spokeswoman Christina Favuzzi.

Kids learned to “Stop, drop and roll" and even got a tour of a fire truck.

This is a yearly tradition for the Montecito Fire Department.

The hope is to make kids aware of fire safety in the case of a wildfire or a home fire emergency.