Fire Prevention Week is Here!

October 8-14, 2006

Each year the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District commemorates National Fire Prevention Week (FPW) by offering fire-safety education presentations at local elementary schools. The district's public relations coordinator and firefighters present the district's fire safety curriculum to students in preschool through fourth grade with an occasional visit with fifth-graders.

2005 RSFFPD Fire Prevention Week Statistics:

• Dates of presentations: October 6 - 28, 2005
• Number of presentations scheduled: 43
• Number of students to be reached (estimate): 4,300 (an increase of 246% from 2004!)
• Length of presentations: 40 - 45 minutes
• Staff hours spent in schools: 135

  Firefighters have scheduled visits with the following schools / facilities:

  • R. Roger Rowe School
  • Solana Santa Fe School
  • Church of the Nativity School
  • Horizon Prep Elementary
  • Diegueno Country School
  • Horizon Pre-school
  • Village Nursery School
  • Rancho Santa Fe Library
  • Stone Ranch Elementary

History of Fire Prevention Week:

National Fire Prevention Week commemorates the anniversary of two of the most devastating fires in United States history, the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and the Peshtigo Fire of 1871. Both fires began around 9:00 p.m. on October 8, 1871 and continued through the next day.

The Chicago Fire took the lives of 250 people, left another 10,000 homeless, and consumed 17,400 structures over 2,000 acres. The wildfire in Peshtigo was the worst of the two fires, yet many people have never heard of it. Within one day, 1,200 people perished in the Peshtigo conflagration. Seventeen towns were consumed and 1.5 million acres were scorched.

Since 1922, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has sponsored Fire Prevention Week as a way to keep the public informed about the importance of fire prevention.

"Use Candles with Care " is this year's theme, reminding us that while candles may look nice, they’re a growing fire threat in our communities. Knowing the facts about candles is a key to fire safety. For more information about National Fire Prevention Week and cooking safety from the National Fire Protection Agency, click here.

To schedule a fire-safety presentation, please contact Public Relations Coordinator Julie Taber at (858) 756-6008 or taber@rsf-fire.org.