Safety Awareness and Down Syndrome

Down Syndrome and Fire Prevention Week – Awareness Meets Safety

National Fire Prevention Week is observed the week of October 9. This year’s theme for Fire Prevention Week is Every Second Counts – Plan 2 Ways Out!

It’s important to talk about fire safety because there really is no way to predict what any of us would do in the event of a fire. We can’t predict when or where it might happen. As adults, we like to think that we would be calm, clear thinking and effective. But what about our kids? What would they do – hide, cry, cover their ears, run to find you? Our intention with this awareness effort isn’t to alarm or frighten but rather to encourage us all to help our family be prepared in a time of emergency.

We want to encourage our families to take action! Have a family chat about what to do and where to go in case of a fire, check your smoke alarms and locate those fire extinguishers. Practice a fire drill in a relaxed manner and have a Plan B! Think about “what ifs”. Take the family and visit your local fire department and help the EMTs get to know your child(ren).

Some counties,municipalities and local townships have Special Needs Registries. These are used to assist EMTs in responding to any sort of emergency at your home by knowing the special needs of those in your family so they can better serve. Here is list of some of the Special Needs Registries in the DSACO service area.  We continue to update it with new registries that are brought to our attention. If there isn’t a registry in your area, ask what you can do to get one started!

DSACO will also be arranging informational meetings in the community. The goal is to help our families learn from the experts how to best prepare for an emergency whether it is a fire, flood, power outage, medical emergency or any other situation that might involve emergency services.  Watch for notices about a meeting in your area!

We are aware that being prepared for an emergency is thought about with the best of intentions but then life gets in the way and it doesn’t happen! DSACO wants to help our families get prepared! So here’s your enticement:

Send us a photo or video that reflects your family taking some sort of action to prepare – practicing a fire drill, visiting the local EMTs, etc. – and we’ll enter your name into a drawing for one of five $100 gift cards!

Send your photo or video to Marge Barnheiser at mbarnheiser@dsaco.net no later than October 30th.