Audrey Fitzsimmons proudly sprays the sidewalk while practicing with the firehose, under the direction of firefighter Gavin Foster. Fitzsimmons traveled with her preschool group to Milford Fire Department and learned techniques like “stop, drop and roll,” along with emergency phone numbers, and exiting the house safely if a fire were to occur.

There weren’t any real fires to put out, but there was a group of 11 fired-up children at Milford Fire Department Thursday.

Maureen Haab and Delana Walker are the teachers for a group of 3- to 4-year-olds at the United Methodist Preschool who spent the morning visiting their local fire station to learn about fire safety with a more hands-on approach.

It is something these teachers do each year, aligning their visit with October’s Fire Prevention Month.

According to Haab, the children spent time preparing for their visit to the fire station before leaving the school. The preschoolers were taught the basics of “stop, drop and roll,” and good practices for exiting the house if a fire were to occur.

They also made a special fire truck cookie with gumdrops, cookies and icing to take home to their parents, and were encouraged to pass along the education and information about their upcoming visit to the fire station.

Satiah Garza learns how to adjust the spray of the fire hose from firefighter Gavin Foster. Garza was one of 11 preschool students who traveled to Milford Fire Department Thursday to learn more about fire safety during October’s Fire Prevention Month.

When the children arrived at the Milford Fire Department, they were given a tour of the facilities, and shown some of the pieces of equipment used to combat fires.

Shane Bucher, Gavin Foster and Scott Wallace, Milford Fire Department, spent about half an hour showing the children how to put out flames with a fire hose.

Each preschooler was able to hold the fire hose and adjust the nozzle with the help of Foster, spraying the lawn and sidewalks in the process.

After the excitement from practicing with the fire hose, the children were given a coloring book with stickers to take home and show their parents.

The firefighters had one last surprise for the children — a ride back to school on the fire truck. Haab said the fire truck ride is “always kind of special for the children, and they really enjoy that.”

The 11 preschoolers and their teachers piled into the back of the fire truck with the firefighters as guides, and smiled hugely as the truck drove them back to class.