On Friday, June 10, 2011 the first of 20 fire safety trailers was unveiled at the Manitoba Association of Fire Chiefs conference in Brandon, Manitoba.

Over the next 4 years Red River Mutual will be sponsoring the Manitoba Firefighters’ Burn Fund – Fire Safety Trailer Program. This program will see at least 20 Fire Safety Trailers, valued at $50,000 each, deployed throughout the province. The trailers will be provided to mutual aid districts, who will work together under the direction of the Office of the Fire Commission to provide interactive fire safety training, emergency-response service and education to young people.

“We are very proud to support the Manitoba Firefighters’ Burn Fund and fire-prevention education throughout Manitoba,” said Brian Esau, president and CEO of Red River Mutual. “Our company is committed to protecting people from loss and we’re excited about helping to get these prevention trailers into the community teaching fire prevention at schools, festivals and other events.”

Speaker Brian Esau, President and CEO, Red River Mutual, standing behind Chris Jones, Fire Commissioner, Drew Caldwell, MLA, Brandon East, and Gary Bell, President of the Manitoba Association of Fire Chief

The trailers target elementary school-aged children and are designed to look just like a house. Children learn about fire safety through the use of props like smoke machines and heated doors that simulate a real fire in a home. The trailers will also have a mock kitchen and bedroom with the ability to simulate a fire in each of those settings. They also offer:

• accessibility for students with disabilities,
• a working bedroom window to simulate an escape route,
• an instruction area for children to listen to a safety presentation,
• a flat-screen TV visible from outside the trailer that can show fire-prevention messages to waiting students, and
• a self-contained control room for the instructor to manipulate the props.

For more information about Red River Mutual’s involvement in the Fire Safety Trailer Program, please contact Dana Oftedal, Red River Mutual, 1-800-370-2888 or email, doftedal@redrivermutual.com

Exterior of Fire Safety Trailer. Speaker Drew Caldwell, MLA, Brandon East, standing behind Chris Jones, Fire Commissioner, Gary Bell, President of the Manitoba Association of Fire Chiefs, and Brian Esau, President and CEO, Red River Mutual.