WACO, Texas — In honor of National Fire Prevention Week, Baylor University’s Mayborn Museum is partnering with the university’s Department of Public Safety, the Waco Fire Department, American Red Cross, American Medical Response and other local first responders to make sure Central Texans know their fire safety.
For the first time ever, the groups partnered up to throw a fun educational day for families at the Mayborn Museum.
There were presentations throughout Sunday afternoon, fire truck and ambulance tours and kids got to put out a fire by learning how to use a fire extinguisher.
Paxton Horton, 8, got the full experience and even quizzed the the firefighters to make sure they knew their stuff.
"They're nice and they're heroes," he said.
The Thomas family spent their Sunday afternoon at the event, soaking in all the information they can.
"The kids are young, but they get to tangibly see this fire truck and this fire equipment, and they got to handle the fire extinguisher, and so it's very real life for them," said Jon Thomas, father of three.
Starting them young and teaching them early -- that way everyone is prepared for it and when the time were to come.
Lt. Keith Guillory with the Waco Fire Department says fire safety is an important knowledge base to have and getting out with the community is something those in the department always look forward to.
"They look at us as super heroes and so we like to take the cape off of ourselves and put it our young people, let them be kind of a superhero for the day and hopefully inspire them to one day look at a job within the fire service," Guillory said.
The American Red Cross also gave out free smoke alarms for those who live in the city limits that don't have an operating one.
The goal is to make sure Central Texan's are prepared for when the seconds count.
If you were to ask Horton what his biggest takeaways are...
"There's three things, awesome, cool and dependable," he said. "They can't get destroyed."
And now he's fire safety ready.
Fire Prevention Week is observed each year during the week of Oct. 9 in commemoration of the Great Chicago Fire, which began on Oct. 8, 1871, and caused devastating damage. In 1925, President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed Fire Prevention Week a national observance, making it the longest-running public health observance in our country.