Thousands of students gathered on the Mizzou campus for the Columbia Fire Department’s 12th annual Fire Factor event.
The highlight of the day was the burning of a simulated student bedroom.
Firefighters filled the replica with a bed, desk, chairs and all the other things a student would normally find in their room.
Without anything added to enhance the burning, the room was set on fire to show the speed and ferocity of a real fire.
MU student Wes Freeland said, “I learned everything about fire safety and being very, very cautious when smoke alarms go off. I’ll pay a lot of attention to that. It was amazing to watch it just flare up immediately after the smoke alarm went off. You have so little time to get out. I never knew that.”
This year’s Fire Factor also included fire truck bucket rides, fire extinguisher training and a firefighter obstacle course.
The goal was raising student awareness of fire safety and prevention.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forKRCG