Lessons at Urbana Safety Town are about handling emergencies

The Urbana police and fire departments are working together to help prepare children to handle emergency situations.

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In Safety Town, a makeshift destination in Melvin Miller Park featuring tricycles and miniature houses, members of the safety forces and nurses teach the younger set about stranger danger, gun, fire and drug safety, as well as a handful of other topics.

Police Sgt. Jason Kizer told News Center 7's Allyson Brown on Thursday that the program brings in community partners to teach children good habits early.

Firefighter Jacob Jones agrees that now is the best time to teach.

"The more practice they get doing it, hopefully, the better they react if they ever are in the situation of having a fire or even an emergency at home," he said. "They will know how to get help."

In a recent lesson, nurses and a pilot taught children about CareFlight and got to tour the air ambulance.

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Urbana's Safety Town is a two-week program available to anyone. The program began in 2012 after a police officer's son came up with the idea.

Safety Town's borders don't end in Urbana. Troy, Springboro, Hilliard and other cities offer the program.

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