College Station Fire Department hosts the Grinch to teach fire safety

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) - The College Station Fire Department offered a photo opportunity with the Grinch to spread fire safety tips and raise holiday spirits.

The event was held at the Fire Department Administration Building on Monday afternoon. The Fire Department hopes to spread fire safety information further into the community and to welcome people into their workplace.

“We want the community to come in and take photos with the Grinch and then be able to hand out some of those fire safety tips for kids to come take away,” said Harlei Struck, Community Outreach Specialist.

The department gave activity books titled “Fire Safety with Santa,” to each kid who posed with the Grinch.

“[We want] to be proactive in the community rather than waiting for the community to come to us,” said Struck. “We are wanting to provide events for the community to come to.”

The educational handout offers advice to keep people safe from potential fire hazards in the colder months. Some of the safety tips include keeping trees well-watered and avoiding overloaded electrical sockets.

Heating, holiday decorations, winter storms, and candles can create a higher risk in colder months for a fire to occur, according to the National Fire Protection Administration website.

“Specifically, in the wintertime, we want to make sure we are keeping anything that’s flammable at least 3 feet away from a heat source,” said Struck. “Also, if you have an electrical heater in the wintertime, you want to make sure it’s on a sturdy platform.”

Struck said people can look forward to more events in the future from the Fire Department, including the College Station Christmas Parade where the Fire Department will also feature the Grinch.

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