Stoughton Fire Gets Creative Running Education During Pandemic

STOUGHTON, MA — The Stoughton Fire Department was awarded a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services to continue its fire education and prevention programs in 2021.

The department received $5,281 for the Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) Program and $2,680 for the Senior SAFE Program.

The funding for the Stoughton Fire Department's two safety programs will allow for specially trained fire educators to give students and seniors lessons on fire safety while meeting the requirements of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's Health Curriculum Frameworks and the Department of Fire Services Curriculum Planning Guidebook. But because of the coronavirus pandemic, Fire Chief Mike Laracy said the department will have to get creative to run these programs.

"It has created some challenges because the kids are in school for a certain amount of time," Laracy said. "So for us to get in is tough right now."

But some programs can still be run in the school. For the past few years, the fire department has collaborated with art teacher Kelliann Jarasitis at O'Donnell Middle School with the Arson Watch art contest.

In the statewide contest, students create posters with messages fostering fire prevention safety. Laracy said the district had two students place in the top two in Norfolk County the last two years, and one student placed third in the entire state, bringing in $1,000 for the program.

"We're getting the message out the best we can," Laracy said.

As for seniors, Laracy said Firefighter Jack Hussy still goes out to install smoke detectors for people. He's also hoping to bring back the Fire Safety and Wellness Fair if enough people get vaccinated by the fall. The fair is a collaboration with local fire departments and offers a cookout for seniors with fire safety education.

According to the state's Department of Fire Services, the number of children who died in fires in Massachusetts each year has dropped by 78 percent since the launch of the SAFE Program.