Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 30, Number 10, 1 October 2013 — Spreading fire safety awareness on Kauaʻi [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Spreading fire safety awareness on Kauaʻi

By Harold Nedd With firefighters on Kaua'i answering more calls, they are turning attention this month to a weeklong focus on preventing kitchen fires. The outreach is part of a larger effort aimed at reducing the dangers Kaua'i residents face from fires, whieh accounted for an estimated $2.9 million in losses on the island a year ago. It also coincides with a national effort to promote fire safety during Fire Prevention Week, whieh runs from Oct. 6 to 12. "During the week, we'll be spreading the word that more fires start in the kitchen than in any other part of the home - and we'U help teach Hawaiians and others how to keep cooking fires from starting in the first plaee," said Kilipaki Vaughan, a fire inspector with the Kaua'i Fire Department. As part of the weeklong awareness effort, the department will heavily rely on a mohile fire safety trailer that will make puhlie appearances at schools and eommunity events. In August, the Board of Trustees for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs toured the 30-foot-long trailer after an annual meeting on Kaua'i. The emergency simulation trailer provides hands-on experience with potential heahh, fire and safety hazards, educating users about the importance of prevention and planning.

On Kaua'i, the fire department answered 5,453 calls for fires in 2012, up 17.6 percent from 4,638 in 2010, the last time a fire caused a death on Kaua'i. The amount of loss Kaua'i residents suffered from fires totaled $2.9 million in 20 12, down from $3.1 million in 2010, according to the Kaua'i Fire Department. ■

Kilipaki Vaughan of the Kaua'i Fire Department, right, talks with OHA Chairperson Colette Machado and Kaua'i and Ni'ihau Trustee Dan Ahuna during a tour of the department's mohile fire safety trailer. - Photo: Harold Hedd