By Michael V. Crismali, Correspondent
EAST WINDSOR – The firehouse bay, where the firetrucks are usually parked, was transformed into several informative and interactive stations, which offered something for everyone as members of East Windsor Volunteer Fire Company No. 2 closed out Fire Prevention Week by hosting an open house for members of the community.
There were four separate stations set up, each manned by a qualified firefighter who spent some time educating the adults about various fire related topics. Examples included a station devoted to showing the different types of fire extinguishers and the types of fires they would be most appropriate for.
There was another station devoted to the different types of detectors that may be found in people’s homes, as well as potentially valuable life-saving tips about proper maintenance and placement of various detectors in the home. Each household also left with a brand new smoke detector, which has a 10-year life span (as opposed to the normal five years), and never requires a change of batteries.
The members of Station 46 had something special prepared for the youngest attendees of the open house. Kids were taught how to stop, drop and roll, check doorways for heat and also how to use a fire hose. Upon successful completion of the three stations, kids were presented with a junior firefighter certificates and a firefighter helmets.
Among the highlights of the event was the live fire demonstration under the direction of Chief Steve Genthe and Captain Mario Batista. Firefighters demonstrated how quickly a grease fire can start by actually letting cooking oil get hot enough in a frying pan to ignite, and then showed the potential danger of using water when trying to put it out.
There was also a live demo involving using different types of fire extinguishers on actual fires and, under strict supervision, a few volunteers even got to experience putting out a real fire with extinguishers.
