In her essay, Dakota said she learned about different ways that fires can start and quickly spread through your home. “The worst part about a fire is that you can’t breathe in the smoke,” she said. “Your best chance to survive the fire is by getting as low on the ground as possible and cover your mouth and nose while crawling through the smoke to the nearest exit.” She added that you should touch the door to make sure there isn’t a fire on the other side. Dakota encourages everyone to have a fire alarm.
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Left to right are Assistant Fire Chief Dustin Lazenby, Fire Chief Rick Araiza and Captain John Harbor with Dakota Cane. Dakota was the overall winner of a School District wide essay contest. |
McKevett student honored
for fire safety essay
March 13, 2015
Santa Paula News
During October all fourth grade students in Santa Paula learned about fire safety at home from Santa Paula firefighters using the smoke house to teach them.
Afterwards the children were invited to write about what they learned. Dakota Cane, a fourth grader at McKevett School was the winner for the entire school district and was honored at a ceremony on the McKevett playground, with all the classes watching. Her name was placed on a special trophy, which will be on display in the McKevett office. She and her family will also get to ride on a fire engine to the fire station for a lunch.
Captain John Harbor introduced Dakota, who did not know she had won beforehand. Harbor complimented the students on how quickly they exited their classroom during a fire drill right before the ceremony. “That’s very important to do when the alarm goes off,” he said. “You should learn how to do that at home as well.”
