Modesto firefighters use fun to make safety message memorable

Modesto firefighters are clowning around this week, slipping serious safety messages into assemblies meant to be memorable.

Characters Tex the Clown, the DJ and Firefighter Nick took the Modesto Fire Department show to Fremont Elementary on Wednesday as part of a 10-school sweep to spread the word.

Engineer Tommy Dick donned white makeup and an oversize cowboy hat, playing the silly guy the kindergartners through third-graders had to teach.

Firefighter Rod Riley played the DJ, bedecked in jeans and gold chains.

Engineer Nick Clark was the straight man, clad in his workaday dark blue uniform.

The question “Do you like birthdays?” started off the show, with the presenters suggesting kids give smoke detectors a “birthday present” as a reminder to replace the battery every year.

The grand finale came as a blast from Modesto Fire Engine Company No. 5’s roof-mounted water monitor, giving a thirsty field a spectacular drink.

Along the way, school Principal Susan Fisher slipped off her heels to don oversize firefighter turnouts as the kids cheered her on.

Crawling through smoke, finding an exit, setting an outside meeting place and other fire safety messages took young volunteers scooting through a small tunnel and the clown squeezing out a playhouse window. “Stop, drop and roll!” – a classic – capitalized on kid recognition to straighten out a confused Tex.

But the morning assembly took on traffic safety, too, covering bike helmets and looking left-right-left before crossing the street. Pedestrian safety is a focus at Fremont, which sits at the corner of Orangeburg Avenue and Tully Road, both four-lane streets. A sign announcing that Fremont’s “Falcons rock when they use the crosswalk” hangs above the main entry door.

“We’re at such a busy intersection here. I was very grateful for the extra emphasis on traffic safety,” Principal Fisher said after the show as she unpacked sticker badges and red pencils given to the school.

“The reality is, we’re probably going to go on more incidents involving kids in vehicle accidents,” said Fire Chief Sean Slamon. “We have the fire safety message, but we talk about some general safety as well.”

The Fire Department’s assemblies, a 20-year tradition, returned this year after being sidelined three years by budget cuts.

“It is something they have fun doing because they see the kids are absolutely absorbing the fire safety message,” Slamon said. “It’s not uncommon, two or three weeks later, to have a kid come up to them when they’re at a hydrant or something, and say, ‘I remember you,’ and talk about what they learned. And that is pretty neat.”

This story was originally published October 22, 2014 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Modesto firefighters use fun to make safety message memorable."