LEXINGTON — Worthington Township Fire Chief Dustin Hoptry stood on the lawn in front of Lexington’s Central Elementary School holding a rolled-up firehose.
“You ready, brother?” he asked the next third grader in line. The boy nodded. Hoptry draped the hose over his tiny shoulder.
“Go!”
The boy dashed across the lawn, weaving through a set of cones before setting the firehose on top of a small tunnel. He scurried through the tunnel, then drug the end of a different firehose back to the start of the obstacle course.
The firefighter’s challenge is always a popular station during Safety Day, an annual outdoor event at Central Elementary School.
Students from Central and Western elementaries participated in Safety Day on Tuesday, where they got to meet personnel from local fire, police and emergency management departments. There were also representatives from the county dog warden’s office, the local SWAT team, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the YMCA, and a life flight helicopter.
In addition to traditional safety training, students also learned about anti-bullying and staying safe on social media.
Central Elementary Principal Kathy Weidig started the tradition about 20 years ago. It was originally a fire safety activity held in October, but over the years it evolved into an all-day, end-of-the year event.
“I saw a fireman’s challenge and I thought it would just be a great way for my kids to learn.” she said. “It’s very interactive, that keeps the kids moving and interesting.
“So I think the kids like it.”
Weidig hopes the event will prepare students and empower them to contact appropriate safety personnel if they ever face an emergency.
“They learn from the experts in their field and they get to meet them one on one,” Weidig explained. “That way, if something really does happen, they’re not as alarmed. They know that they are friends that they can go to for help.”
Master Sgt. Joshua Wendling of the 179th Airlift Wing spoke to students about the base’s fire department.
“A lot of people don’t realize that there are full time firemen out there for the aircraft. So we’re there for the C-130s, for the Air Force,” he said. “We also have that mutual aid contract with the city and surrounding townships because we have the foam.
“Many places don’t have the foam to put out tanker truck fires and things like that.”
Stan Hoptry, an assistant state fire marshal, said the day offers a chance to teach kids how to prevent disasters — not just react to them.
“We’re teaching about fire safety, cooking safety, smoke detectors,” he said. “If we teach them about safety, there are less accidents, less fires — we’ve done our job.”
