Mono Mills firefighters hosting open house for seniors, families
Firefighters from the Mono Mills Fire Station are inviting the community to join them for an open house and pancake breakfast on June 1.
The open house runs from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Victoria Parks Community Centre (35 Victoria Crescent).
At the open house, there will be chances to learn about fire safety, emergency vehicles on display, auto extrication and fire extinguisher demonstrations, and a free pancake and sausage breakfast.
The Caledon OPP and Dufferin County Paramedic Service will also be attending the event.
Todd Hillhouse, a volunteer firefighter and public education officer at Caledon Fire Station 308 in Mono Mills, explained the open house has been happening annually since 2005, when he became the public education officer for Station 308.
Hillhouse said the open house takes place in June to coincide with Seniors Month.
“In our catchment area, there are a lot of seniors… the idea is to provide some programs related to fire safety in the home that can help ensure their safety and help contribute to them staying in their home,” said Hillhouse.
A main focus for Caledon Fire is education surrounding safe cooking. Hillhouse said cooking is still the number one cause of fires in residential units in Caledon.
“We'll run sessions where we provide some tips on that using our fire safety trailer which has a little kitchenette,” said Hillhouse. “We are also going to have a display with smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and talk about the do's and don’ts, and just how to maintain your alarms in your house, and if you're not able to maintain them, what programs are available.”
Hillhouse said the fire extinguisher demonstration will be great as in an emergency, there’s no time to learn how to use one if you don’t know how.
“We’ll teach you how to properly use a fire extinguisher, and what applications it works in and what you shouldn’t use it for,” he said.
Hillhouse said kids always enjoy watching the auto extrication demonstration at the open houses.
“It’s really interesting to see, it’s more than you would get watching it in a movie or on TV,” said Hillhouse.
They also enjoy being able to sit in the fire trucks and ask as many questions as they like about the machines, he added.
The free pancake and sausage breakfast is also a highlight of the event, said Hillhouse.
“It’s a great event, everybody’s welcome,” he said. “It really helps to get to know who are your local firefighters here in the community who live in the community with you.”
Zachary Roman, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Caledon Citizen
