On October 4, 16 young students from Blainville and Rosemère elementary schools had the chance to become firefighters for a day and explore the various facets of the job—an experience they will never forget. 

The Firefighters for a Day contest was open to Grade 3 students from each elementary school in Blainville and Rosemère. This special day at the Blainville fire department provided them with an opportunity to gain a greater understanding of firefighters' work and to take part in activities related to this job.

During the day, the youngsters—all dressed up as firefighters—were invited to tour the fire department's trucks and facilities. They were also given training on firefighting gear, breathing apparatus and victim search as well as many tips on fire prevention, in addition to an explanation of how to inspect equipment, use a portable fire extinguisher and extinguish a wood pallet fire.

The "Firefighters for a Day” experience is a memorable and enriching one for these Grade 3 students, who then return home with everlasting memories to share with friends and family. We wish to thank the Service de la sécurité incendie for giving our youngsters this opportunity, year after year," mentioned Eric Westram, Mayor of Rosemère.

At the end of the day, the youngsters were welcomed by Liza Poulin, Mayor of Blainville, and Eric Westram, Mayor of Rosemère, as well as Stéphane Dufour and Patrick Marineau, the two Town Councillors from the Mobility, Safety and Traffic Committee. Members of the fire department and mascot Yvon Larosé were on hand, too. Not only did they give these third-graders a few gifts, but also the privilege of signing their respective town's guest book.

"Discovering the many aspects of a firefighter’s job, while having fun—that was the objective of this special day. The enthusiastic response from the children confirms to us that our mission was accomplished," pointed out Mayor Liza Poulin.

Here are the sixteen students that were selected (one from each school) to be on this year’s Firefighters for a Day team: Clément Recher (École de la Seigneurie), Flavie Le Blanc (École des Semailles), Émy Paquette (École de l'Aquarelle), Laurie Richer-Bilodeau (École Pierre Elliott Trudeau), Xavier Phaneuf (École des Ramilles), Charlotte Raymond (École de l'Envolée), Logan St-Laurent (École Notre Dame de l'Assomption), Alice Leclercq (École Chante-Bois), Zack Arsenault (École Plateau Saint-Louis), William Gervais (École de la Renaissance), Moricio Chouweiri (École de Fontainebleau), Roxanne Nassar (École Montessori International), Jake Young (McCaig Elementary School), Sophia Chaudry (Académie Ste-Thérèse), Thomas Langlois (École Alpha) and Théo Labelle (École Val-des-Ormes).