City
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Firefighters 
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Fire Safety Education Really Works!!! - Check out this story in the Macomb Daily from Jan-2-2005
A lesson well learned
Youngster implements fire safety plan, rushes family out of burning home.
When
firefighters present safety tips to students in local schools, they often
emphasize the importance of developing an escape plan at home and practicing
it with the whole family twice a year.
On Saturday morning, 11-year-old Vincent Schrade showed he was paying attention in class when he exercised his family’s exit strategy when their mobile home in Harrison Township caught fire and burned them out of a residence. “I was amazed that this young man not only practiced a fire drill with his family, but used it today,” said Lt. Richard Malik of the Harrison Township Fire Department. “The learning paid off for him. I’m very proud of him.” The electrical fire broke out about 8:30 a.m. Saturday near a furnace and quickly spread through the home in the Willow Pointe mobile home park near Joy Boulevard and Interstate 94. Vincent’s father, Michael, said he was working on the computer when he smelled smoke in the house — the smoke detector apparently failed to activate — and saw smoke coming through the vents. Michael rushed through the house to make sure his wife, Aleda, was able to get out safely. Meanwhile, Vincent escorted his 7-year-old brother, Christopher, outside. Per their prearranged exit plan, the boys waited for their parents at a designated location near a large tree. The Schrades said Vincent learned about the fire plan while attending Graham Elementary School in L’Anse Creuse Public Schools. “I guess they had firemen in their teaching the whole class how to get out of the building if there is a fire,” said Michael Schrade. “Vince came home and mapped out a plan with all of the details. And we practiced it a couple of times, so he knew right what to do.” Vincent said he never forget the plan even though he learned about it two years ago when he was in the fourth grade. “I was just trying to make sure everyone was OK,” he said. “My dad was saving my mom, so when I saw the smoke, I just pushed my brother outside and then we waited over by the tree for the fire truck to come.” Firefighters said public education is a high priority for the Harrison Township Fire Department. Firefighter Bob Mylnarek said the instructors aim their talks to the children at each grade level so that the children can understand what to do. They begin with simple instructions such as the “stop, drop and roll” exercise and progress the lessons from there. “We really hit them hard on exit drills and tell them to practice their plans to make sure everyone gets out of the home right away,” Mylnarek said. As an incentive to learn, students this year participated in a contest sponsored by the fire department with the winner receiving the grand prize of riding in a Harrison Township fire truck during the Thanksgiving Day Parade. Although the Schrade family escaped without injury, they lost everything they owned and have no insurance. The American Red Cross gave them some vouchers for a hotel stay and to purchase some clothes. “I’m so glad they’re OK,” said Mary Ann Rhine, sister of Aleda Schrade. “This is my birthday, and it’s been the worst one of my life.”
Macomb Daily photo courtesy of Mary Ann Rhine Aleda Schrade stands outside of her burned mobile home in Harrison Township with her sons, Christoper and Vincent, and her husband, Michael. Vincent is holding the first baseball bat he ever received, which firefighters retrieved from the burning home |
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