Precaution and preperation saves lives. And when 9-year-old Isaiah Blais was awakened by his home’s fire alarm in the early morning of May 25, he knew exactly what to do.
Isaiah got his six-year-old brother, Elijah, out of bed and started walking him toward the front door. The two were nearly out of the house when their parents got to them, and all four were able to get out of the house safely before a three-alarm fire all but destroyed their home.
On Tuesday, the New Ipswich Fire Department honored Isaiah’s quick thinking with a ceremony at the fire house, where Fire Chief Meredith Lund presented Isaiah with a Young Hero Award, along with a gift certificate to Short Stop, a fire department hat and shirt, as well as some toys and coloring books to replace the possessions the two young boys lost in the fire.
“I am asking that we treat fire safety with the same diligence as we treat everything else,” said Lund. “We teach our kids to walk and how to dress themselves. We teach them how to ride a bike and how to cross the street. We need to be just as proactive with fire safety.”
Along with the rest of his collection of swag, Lund also presented Isaiah with a kid-friendly booklet on planning and practicing exit routes, so that he could be prepared in his new house as well.
“Practicing once a year at the fire station is not enough,” said Lund. “Just like riding a bike, kids need to develop a muscle memory so that when the smoke detector goes off, they immediately react by going outside to a meeting place.”
Lund encouraged parents to create an exit strategy and practice it with their children multiple times a year.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.