Kids learn fire safety
MANILA, Philippines - Some 120 public school kids from Batangas City became the very first batch of junior fire marshals after undergoing a two-day camp that gave them a greater understanding and appreciation of a fireman’s job and its responsibilities as well as knowledge on fire prevention.
The 1st Junior Fire Marshal Camp was conducted by Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation (Shell) through Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. (PSFI) in partnership with the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Batangas City Fire Station, Batangas City government, and the Department of Education (DepEd)-Batangas City. Considered a first in the country, the Junior Fire Marshal Camp was held in time for Fire Prevention Month as part of Shell’s advocacy to raise awareness about safety practices, especially among children.
“More deaths are caused by household fires than by those that strike commercial establishments, and most of them involve children,” said BFP Batangas City fire marshal Col. Romel Tradio. “By holding this camp, Shell and its Foundation are effectively saving lives since what the children will learn here can spell the difference between life and death during fires.”
PSFI program development manager Jose Alberto Javier told the participants that as junior fire marshals, they are now role models among their peers. Addressing students from the public elementary schools of Tabangao, Ambulong, Libjo, San Isidro, and Malitam, and Tabangao National High School, he added that Junior Fire Marshal Camp would be scaled up nationwide, similar to Shell’s Road Safety Camp program piloted in Batangas City, which was replicated in the cities of Pandacan, Bacolod, and Mandaue.
Shell communications manager for manufacturing Cesar Abaricia reiterated the importance of teaching the youth the right frame of mind and the discipline needed to prepare them to be the next leaders of our nation.
Meanwhile, Batangas City Administrator Philip Baroja emphasized the lifetime commitment that the participants will be carrying back to their schools and homes. He said that as they finish the camp, heroes are being born.
To institutionalize the effort, a Memorandum of Agreement was signed between PSFI, BFP, and DepEd.
