James Martin says he's seen returns on teaching children about fire safety at a young age.
Martin has been involved in fire safety training for kids for the Woolwich Fire Department for 25 years.
He says getting young children trained in fire safety helps them grown up with a mindset of being fire and safety conscious to the point where it becomes a part of their daily routine.
Among the points Martin likes to emphasize in his sessions is the importance of an emergency plan.
He says when fire breaks out, things are extremely chaotic.
Knowing what to do and where to go in an emergency is something Martin says can help save lives and reduce damage to property.
Martin was at a barn fire several years ago where a child was killed.
He pushes kids on the importance of getting out of a barn as soon as they see fire, not to go looking for a pet before leaving.
According to Martin, there is a barn fire every other day somewhere in Ontario.
And he points out the published cost of those fires usually just refers to the loss of hard assets.
He says it doesn't include the lost income and, in the case of livestock, lost genetics.
Martin suggests the combined losses in a major barn fire can be overwhelming for a farm business.
Over 100 children and their parents attended last weekend's Wellington Children's Farm Safety Day near Alma.
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Martin says one of the key things he tries to teach young children is how fast fire can spread, especially in older barns.
[audio mp3="http://blackburnnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/MARTIN-Fire-1.mp3"][/audio]
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Martin talked about how fast fire can spread through a barn and the importance of having an emergency plan in place.
[audio mp3="http://blackburnnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/MARTIN-Fire-2.mp3"][/audio]
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Martin emphasizes the importance of teaching children at a young age so they grow up with the mindset of being fire and safety conscious.
[audio mp3="http://blackburnnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/MARTIN-Fire-3.mp3"][/audio]
