Teaching fire safety to Kosovo's children
Fires in Kosovo claim the lives of children more than any other age group. The OSCE is therefore helping to raise youngsters' awareness of fire safety and prevention through a project that will reach every primary school in Kosovo.
Helping the most vulnerable
The door opens and a unanimous "mirëdita" (Albanian for "good afternoon") resonates from the classroom. The children quietly watch as a middle-aged man makes his way to the teacher's desk and introduces himself. "I am Bajram Rexhepi, from the local fire brigade here in Pristina."
Rexhepi has been a fireman for more than 13 years, but on 10 October 2008, he was nervous. For the first time in his life, he had to explain to a group of eight year-olds what to do in case of a fire - or even better, how to prevent one. "I've given many presentations, but this one was different," he says. "I needed to explain everything in terms that children can understand."
According to Rexhepi, the number of fires in Kosovo is very high. From January to September this year alone, there were more than 5,000 reported incidents, which left seven people dead and hundreds more injured.
"Unfortunately, most of the victims are children," he says, recalling a case in October when two girls, aged two and five, died in a house fire in Jezerc in south-eastern Kosovo.
Compelling circumstances
Because of such incidents, the OSCE Mission is now carrying out a fire safety education project for primary schools with the Fire Protection Association in Prishtinë/Pristina.
As Angela Tenbruck, the Mission's Security Awareness Officer, explains, school presentations are just part of current efforts to raise fire safety awareness among children. "We have also helped to print leaflets and emergency exit signs for the schools," she says.
With winter fast approaching, it was high time to begin this project, Tenbruck adds. More power cuts are expected, and as a result, there is a risk that more fires will be caused by candles, generators, and wood and gas stoves. "Children have to be made aware of these dangers," she says.
Prevention is crucial
The project will initially cover five schools in the Prishtinë/Pristina region in 2008. In 2009, the presentations, leaflets and signs will be taken to all 541 primary schools in Kosovo. Some 300,000 six to nine year-olds will be more aware and better prepared as a result.
Arbnor Hasani, the project co-ordinator from the Fire Protection Association, says prevention is vital. "What we have learned from our work is that many lives can be saved when people know how to react and protect themselves."
Rexhepi further explains that in most cases children start fires while playing with matches. Afraid of getting into trouble, they try to fight the fire on their own instead of calling for help. "The fire gets bigger and bigger, and time runs out," he adds.
Teaching fire safety
But to explain the dangers and necessary precautions to children, their attention has to be kept for some time. Rexhepi has been happy with the children's interest so far: "Even if they remember only one thing from my presentation, it's worth it."
Third-grader Lisa Beqiri from 'Dardania' primary school in Prishtinë/Pristina was happy that she and her classmates were the first to hear Rexhepi's lecture. "Now I know that in case of a fire I should not hide behind the door," she says. "I should run and shout 'Fire, fire!'" she says with a smile.
There is still a long way ahead for Rexhepi and two of his colleagues who will also give presentations. Having witnessed the children's enthusiasm, however, Rexhepi knows that things will change for the better.
He believes that the long-term solution is to include fire safety education in primary school curricula, an idea that is currently being discussed by the OSCE Mission, the Fire Protection Association and Kosovo's Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.