A group of young kids visiting this Ventura County Fire Station are getting a chance to see what it’s like to be a fire fighter in our community.
From six-year-old Liam Dilworth dressing up in over-sized fire fighter’s gear, to every kid getting the opportunity to turn on the giant fire-fighting hose, there's a lot of fun to be had.
While spraying water and sounding sirens might be the most dramatic and fun parts, there's also a serious side.
David Schwab, the Ventura County Fire Dept. Fire Captain at Station 36, A shift - who has spent 24 years in the fire service - said this is an opportunity to demonstrate that they aren’t all about just fighting fires.
"We run about 5000 calls a year," he explained.
"Any reason that someone calls 911 we go, from the exceptionally sad and traumatic things to things that are kind of fun. We all like the fun stuff more," he said. "We are not all about just fires, we're about being members of the community."
Schwab also shows the young visitors the side of the of the job that not many people get to see - going behind the scenes to the kitchen areas and hang outs, to the dorm rooms where they sleep between long shifts.
"You can be at work for 72 hours...96 hours, it can be sometimes tough," said Schwab.
This community was badly burned in the Woolsey Wildfire in October 2018 and these youngers are growing up with the risk of wildfires increasing. While this is an opportunity for excitement, it’s also a chance to educate them.
"We always plan for the most dynamic and significant fire season. We have a lot of grass growth this year which means that we are going to have a lot of easy starts to fire," said Schwab.
"I don't know if fires will be established and be huge but we could have a LOT of fires," he said. "Every year is difficult."
These kids - and their parents - appreciate the opportunity to see behind the scenes and meet the first responders in a non-emergency situation.
"We have this great opportunity to check out the local fire station and the truck and the water and the kids all have fun. I think the local fireman actually like it too!" said Molly Neubert.
"It's so nice they can get hands on experience of what the fire fighters do and get to learn a little but more about that role in our community," Samantha Flynn told KCLU.
"My son's obsessed with fire trucks...so this is a really big deal for him. It's nice to learn more about all the different things the fire fighters and the fire department do." said Roya Fathi.
And these youngsters might just be our fire fighters of tomorrow.
