Oct. 4 to 10 is national Fire Prevention Week and the Weyburn Fire Department (WFD) is using the week as an opportunity to engage with the community. WFD visits students for Fire Prevention Week Deputy fire chief Mike Cadotte said firefighters will be visiting local elementary schools this week to teach students about fire safety and prevention and give them an inside look at what firefighters do. Cadotte said the presentations will cover what to do when a fire breaks out, how to use and maintain smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, and how firefighters respond to fires. "We're basically focusing on fire prevention in the home, understanding smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors, what to do when those alarms go off, ensuring that they understand to stay low, exiting the building, stay underneath the smoke levels, having a meeting place." Cadotte said students will carry this information and their questions home to their families. "Kids will go home, and they do have some handouts, and say to their parents, 'hey, where's our meeting place? Where's our smoke detectors? Do we have a smoke detector on all levels? Have we changed the batteries? Are they working? Are they tested?'. They will bring home some of these questions and certainly influence the parents if that hasn't already been done." Fire prevention: An ongoing conversation Cadotte said engaging with the public is an important part of community safety year-round, not just during fire prevention week. He explained that not everyone understands what causes household fires or how serious the experience can be. "Anyone who's had a fire certainly will have the scars to remember it. And I'm not talking physical, I'm talking the mental scars to understand what a fire does and how serious it is. I think the message is critical because it's that unseen, that unknown factor." Related Stories: Charging into fire safety: preventing fires caused by lithium-ion batteries Cadotte brings focus on prevention, education to Weyburn Fire Weyburn first responders recognized at inaugural Beyond the Badge event Proper installation, use, and maintenance of a smoke detector remains an important part of fire safety messaging, according to Cadotte. He said many people do not have a clear understanding of the dangers of smoke. "Even the toxicity of smoke, people don't really understand," Cadotte said. "People have the illusion that they will wake up if they smell smoke. They don't need a smoke detector, which is not the case. The toxicity of smoke will overcome someone before they would wake up." Cadotte said community education is important to the WFD to ensure local homes are meeting safety regulations. "It's not to punish people, it's to protect them, and unfortunately, regulations in the fire service have a history of being a bit reactive. They tend to happen because of an event, and then after a serious event, legislation is put in place. We hope to be a bit more proactive in our approach and try to put that message out before anything serious was to happen." Cadotte, alongside Acting fire chief Mike Wock, and firefighters Brydon Hnatiuk and Kelsey Arnott visited Legacy Park Elementary School on Tuesday. Find a gallery of photos below. (Photos by Natasha Wiebe/DiscoverWeyburn)