Marine Corps Logistics Base, Calif. -- “One dark night, when people were in bed, Mrs. O’Leary lit a lantern in her shed; the cow kicked it over, winked its eye and said, there’ll be a hot time in the old town tonight.”
This poem was posted in a Chicago newspaper, author anonymous, after The Great Chicago Fire occurred, Oct. 8 through Oct. 10 in 1871. The fire killed more than 200 people and destroyed more than 2,000 acres of the city. Legend has it that the fire started because a cow in the barn of Patrick and Catherine O'Leary, kicked over a kerosene lamp.
Whether the legend is true or not is up to debate, but the tragedy sparked a nationally recognized week of safety and fire prevention measures. Since 1922, the Sunday through Saturday in October in which the eighth and the ninth fall is dedicated to fire prevention.
This year’s theme is “Have 2 Ways Out,” according to Terry Jenkins, assistant chief of Fire and Emergency Services aboard Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, Calif. Having an alternate and primary escape route could be the difference between life and death.
“Knowing as many ways out and having situational awareness is very important,” said Jenkins as he told a story about a day he and a friend were on a date at a restaurant. As the two were eating, Jenkins asked his friend how she would exit the facility in case of an emergency. She responded by saying she would exit through the front door, the same way they came in. They were sitting toward the back of the restaurant, when Jenkins pointed out a back door only about 10 feet from their table that she didn’t even notice.
Another story Jenkins tells is one about The Station Nightclub, in Rhode Island. In February 2003, the crowded nightclub caught fire, killing 100 people and injuring more than 200 others. The entire place was engulfed in flames within five minutes. The majority of the crowd failed to use situational awareness, explained Jenkins. When the fire started, the crowd immediately stampeded through the main entrance, failing to notice the closer routes.
Jenkins often plays a distressing video of the tragedy to show the importance of situational awareness during safety lectures he often gives to Marines and civilians aboard the base.
Tragedies such as this one make this year’s theme of having two ways out extremely important, Jenkins explained.
MCLB Barstow holds several activities in support of Fire Prevention Week every year. This year’s events included: a field trip and tour of the fire station for three and four-year-olds from the Child Development Center, a visit to the CDC from the fire department, tables set out with educational materials, a smoke house display, and a Fire Prevention Week safety stand down barbeque in support of the Marine Corps Ball Committee.
The smoke house is a very useful training tool, Jenkins explained. Although most commonly used with children, he encourages people of all ages to go through it.
“The smoke house is a trailer set up to teach kids how to escape in the event of a fire. They start in the kitchen (the most common place for residential fires to start) and are taught to check the doors for heat before entering. If the door is warm they need to find a new exit,” Jenkins said. “They go through the rest of the house and as it fills with fake smoke, the children learn that the smoke rises and they need to crawl the rest of the way. They end up having to crawl out of a window to escape the trailer.”
“It’s very useful for parents to go through; they learn different ways to teach their children how to escape the house in the case of an emergency,” Jenkins added.
Fire prevention is an everyday job. Fire Prevention Week is used to stress important information about safety and remind the public how important it is, explained Jenkins.
Take the time this week to check your smoke detectors and the exits of your home. Always keep in mind the importance of situational awareness and have two ways out!