From left, Robert Vance, emergency management officer at Keck Medical Center, and Jim Buck, program coordinator for the Rapid Response Team, deliver advice about household fire safety to children from the USC Child Care Center.  Photo/Jon Nalick

From left, Robert Vance, emergency management officer at Keck Medical Center, and Jim Buck, program coordinator for the Rapid Response Team, deliver advice about household fire safety to children from the USC Child Care Center.
Photo/Jon Nalick

By Josh Grossberg

About 40 preschoolers from the USC Child Care Program at the Health Sciences Campus attended a June 26 presentation, where they learned tools to keep safe if they encounter a dangerous situation.

Meeting in the cafeteria at USC Norris Cancer Hospital, the tots learned such safety rules as what to do if they find matches (don’t play with them) and what to do if a fire alarm goes off (find a safe place).

Leading the class were Robert Vance, emergency management officer at Keck Medical Center, and Jim Buck, program coordinator for the Rapid Response Team.

Although the kids ranged in age from 2 to 5, Vance said they were ready to learn some important lessons.

“We want to educate them when they’re young so it’s engrained,” he said.

The kids, children of campus employees, also received a coloring book featuring Sparky the Fire Dog and their own red fire helmets.