Educating the community
First responders hold National Night Out
Trending
MARSHALL-- First responders interacted with adults and youths with conversations and demonstrations during National Night Out on Tuesday.
The event featured many activities for children, including several bouncy castles, a children’s obstacle course, and a dance showcase from the Kayko baton twirlers. A crowd sat to watch performers of all ages spin batons and throw them in the air.
A large tent hosted many stands giving out gifts and showcasing their business or public service. The Marshall Police Department gave out stickers and night lights, giving students lessons about staying safe on bikes and scooters.
Public service workers interacted with children and showed off their equipment. Near the park entrance, police officer Nathan Holden demonstrated the lights, computer, and emergency equipment inside to attendees who wanted to see. Holden said this was his first National Night Out event in Marshall.
“It’s great. We try, I think, as a department, to (attend) every opportunity we can," Holden said. "You know, we’re involved with the community and being out in the community.”
At 5 p.m. attendees got to take a closer look at another emergency vehicle, one not seen often and never seen on the road. The North Memorial Health had one of its helicopters fly in personnel demonstrated how everything works and the process of strapping a patient into the stretcher to get them to a hospital as fast as possible.
A short walk from the emergency vehicles showcase would take attendees to a simulated drunk driving event. Community service officer Chase Dagan could be seen giving children goggles that simulate different ABV levels, then having children try and pedal around cones.
Dagan said the Marshall Police Department does these simulations at events and in schools so students can see the dangers and difficulties with drunk driving.
"It’s good to educate them just because a lot of them are going to be starting drivers’ ed soon," Dagan said. "They really like doing it, and kind of educate them on the dangers of it."
The Marshall Fire Department hosted a demonstration on safely extracting a crash victim from a vehicle. A large crowd gathered around to watch firefighters use the "Jaws of Life" to tear down the doors, windows, and airbags of a car in a showcase of how they would save someone from an accident.
In just 15 minutes, the firefighters were able to take off all the doors and prop up the roof of the vehicle to safely remove anyone from the vehicle.
“It’s life before limb when it comes to this sort of thing," said Jake Olsen, the deputy chief of the Marshall Fire Department. "We’ll do anything to the car that we have to to get our patient out. And if that means cut the thing (the car) in two. Then that’s what we’ll do too."
Throughout the showcase Olsen explained what the firefighters were doing, as well as talking a little about the sacrifices first responders and dispatchers make to serve their community properly.
"You're the forgotten people that always get looked over when we do these nice nights of showing everybody what we do," Olsen said. "So if you know a dispatcher, please thank them.”