East Lake firefighters raise awareness about water safety

EAST LAKE, Fla. - We love to celebrate heroes like firefighters; like most heroes, the East Lake Firefighters use their time to teach valuable lessons mixed with some fun.

"This is our hose-down event. We do it every year," shared Claudia Hernandez, the Fire Educator with East Lake Fire Rescue. "Firefighters come out, attach a hose to the hydrant and start spraying the kids."

"It's good fun! It's cold. It's refreshing," said Bronson, a 10-year-old enjoying the event.

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"Yeah, a lot of fun! It's perfect for the hot days," exclaimed his 11-year-old brother Lucas.

"We highly recommend using life vests, especially if you are doing any water sports like boating," said Hernandez, "We also highly recommend that parents talk to their children about wearing a life jacket. They are used to jumping in, and they are floating, but without a life jacket, you're not going to float back up."

Community engagement is a way for firefighters to help families have a good time with a positive message behind it.

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"Most of the time when our firefighters are seeing our community members, it's during the worst day of our lives," admitted Hernandez, "So having the opportunity to get the community members here to see us, meet us hopefully will make people more comfortable the next time they see us if they're in a bad situation."

Water safety is an important part of living in Florida, you can learn more by clicking here.