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Teaching
Thailand's children
fire
safety |
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REGRETTABLY,
Fire International hasreported
on a number of tragic fires in Thailand that have
involved a high loss of life.
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- Tom
Kanathat
Chantrsiri,
a fire consultant and charity organizer is trying to change
this trend.
Tom
Kanathat became aware of the importance of fire safety
when he was producing safety awareness videos for a cement
company. He had to research the subject from scratch and
slowly became aware of a "certain
apathy" in fire safety in Thailand.
A
trip to Korea
reinforced this view when he saw how well high rise buildings
were protected. He was
so impressed
with the equipment he saw in Korea, he decided to import
it and market it in Thailand.
Taking this
one step further. He began to organize a series of courses
training children in hoe to deal with fires and emergencies.
This led to the formation of The Fire and Rescue Association
of Thailand
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Tom
Kanathat Chantrsiri
Chartered
President of FARA Thailand
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- FARA,
a non-profit organization
founded last year (1997) to help promote fire safety and
education to
- children
up to the age of 12.
- .
- "It
is probably too late to educate adults on how to respond
to fires and other emergencies,"
- he
told Fire International,
- "it
is more effective and will help save more lives if we
teach the children. Then they will
- know
how to act in an emergency and can pass on safety tips
to their parents."
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- The
first
course the children attend is on discipline. Says Tom Kanathat:
- "Discipline
must come first, then fire fighting. Children must not just
learn abort fire, but must also learn
- the value
of passing their knowledge onto others." He is convinced
that this also helps instill good citizenship into children.
- FARAhas
four main activities, the first
of which is to teach children the 'Learn not to burn'
curriculum. This involves hands-on training on using
fire extinguishers, first aid, CPR, fire evacuation, anti
drugs messages and self defense. Class sizes are abort 35
children, always accompanied by a parent or neighbor, who
are encouraged to join in.
- Kited
out in fireproof jackets, boots and helmets, the children
learn the basics of fire safety - the association makes
the training fun and helicopter evacuations, abseiling
and other activities ensure that their attention is
held.
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- The Disabled
Safety project focuses on people with special needs.
Mr. Chantrsiri says:
- .
"Our
experience has shown that disabled people are the most vulnerable
in case of fire and we aim to provide them with a basic
knowledge of fire and how to save themselves, as well as
using different kinds of fire extinguishers."
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- FARA
also provides first aid and
fire prevention training for industry and some government
sectors. In addition, the association provides free information
on safety devices installations,
- such as
smoke and heat detectors, fire alarms, sprinklers and other
safety systems.
- Children
and adults who have participated in the courses often
return as volunteer instructors; all of the courses are
funded by donations and, eventually, Tom
Chantrsiri hopes to raise
- enough
money to build a Fire Safety Academy
for the whole of South East Asia.
- .
- "We
are trying to create a more safe and less risky environment
to all in the world, not just Thailand."
- he
explains.
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