Fire station to open doors

THE NSW Fire Brigades (NSWFB) annual Open Day will be held on Saturday.

Adults and children alike will have the chance to visit the Kiama fire station talk to their local firefighters, climb over the fire trucks, check out the fire station, equipment and historic memorabilia, pick up vital fire safety information and join in a sausage sizzle.

Station commander Peter Mitchell said they were also trying to get a car to use for a simulated car accident rescue.

This year for the first time, fire officers will be presenting a video, Tim"s Story, which features a wheelchair-bound young man who lost his legs in a car crash when he was 17-years-old, and hold a discussion about the consequences of road accidents.

The open day is held a month before winter to help give families the chance to prepare themselves for what is usually the worst season for home fires.

Between June 1 and August 31 last year there were 1328 residential fires, which represented 30 per cent of all home fires for 2006.

On the open day, people can obtain a range of fire safety information, including where to install smoke alarms and how to maintain them, how to create a home escape plan, how to call the NSW Fire Brigades in an emergency using Triple Zero (000), potential fire hazards associated with faulty electric blankets, heaters and appliances, and other winter fire safety information.

Kiama Fire Station will be open to the public from 10am to 2pm on Saturday.