6 Students Got To Ride To School In A Fire Truck After Winning Contest

DOWNERS GROVE, IL — Six District 58 third-graders had the honor of riding in a fire truck to school after winning this year's Home Fire Escape Safety plan contest. The annual contest, which is part of the Learn Not To Burn initiative, challenges students to create a fire escape plan for their own home.

Each year, the Downers Grove Fire Department (DGFD) receives "hundreds of submissions" to the contest, DGFD spokesperson Ashley Downard told Patch.

"It's always a very tough decision to make on who the winners are," she said.

For the contest, students must design an escape plan that maps out the location of their home's smoke alarms, designates a meeting place for family members and provides two escape routes from each room of the house.

The escape plan can be drawn on paper or depicted in a video.

The students must test smoke alarms and are encouraged to run through the escape plan with their family, Downard said. The run-through involves practicing unlocking windows and doors.

One winner was chosen from El Sierra, Hillcrest, Indian Trail, Kingsley, Pierce Downer and Whittier Elementary Schools.

Downard told Patch the winning students, along with their teacher and a friend or family member, got picked up from their houses and taken to the local fire station for breakfast before heading to school.

She said, "This year, we had a good mix of paper and video plans to choose from, and we are thankful for the families that took the time to participate in this important project with their 3rd grade students."