The South Gelderland Safety Region is the proud owner of the 'RedAlert'. The Fireproof Living Team's new educational vehicle will teach visitors to recognise and solve fire hazards! Not with the use of strict, fatherly, well-intended advice, but with a full interactive multimedia show for both young and old!
An interactive quiz has been built into the RedAlert vehicle, whereby questions regarding fire safety need to be answered. The quiz is supported by special effects, ensuring visitors will be shown a realistic image of the risks in their own environment. Part of the vehicle has also been designed with objects which have caused a fire. These objects serve to support the real-life stories. The aim is to encourage people to critically test their homes for fire safety. Information is available to help them with this, making sure they can get started themselves once they get home.
Luci, Fikkie and Murphy
The main characters in the show are Luci and Fikkie. These two brave firefighting dogs will take us along with them on their adventures. They protect Murphy from CO poisoning, they show what happens if you don't clear the filter in the dryer and show the importance of an escape plan.
The audience's help is asked for during the performance: visitors can answer Luci and Fikkie's questions using the manual alarms. The transparent lighting means the firefighters can see the answers and subsequently initiate dialogue with the visitor.
Plug and play
It's important to the safety region that everyone can work with the RedAlert. Easy operation is therefore crucial. FireWare has developed controls which are literally'plug and play. The plug goes into the socket and the show starts all by itself!
Five Nimbo smoke machines are used during the show. The smoke machines can be switched on and off during the show as a result of their short warm-up time of less than 2 minutes. This ensures the system's power consumption stays well below 16 Amps. Very handy, as no power current is now required.
Sustainable reuse of vehicles
The RedAlert has already enjoyed a lengthy career with the fire service. The vehicle came to Nijmegen at the start of the nineteen nineties and served as an emergency vehicle. The RedAlert was sold to the North Limburg region, fire station Mook, in 2001 and was used there until 2004. The vehicle returned to Nijmegen in 2014, where it has been completely transformed into an educational vehicle, partly thanks to the 24-hour shift staff.
Unique realisation process
The great thing about this projecten is that most of the RedAlert has been built by the 24 hour shift team. This team boasts a wealth of knowledge. They include metalworkers, woodworkers, electricians, painters and people who 'simply' have two right hands. FireWare has been tasked with assisting the creative process and looking after the technical designs and software. Our theatre technical origins certainly came in very useful again here.
Inspiring collaborations is one of FireWare's core values. And that's certainly what happened with this projecten! It's unbelievable to see what all the involved parties have managed to achieve in a very short period of time during this projecten! And this collaboration meant the budget has also stayed within the set limits.
We used the intranet to ask everyone for their input for a suitable name for the vehicle in the autumn of 2015. We eventually opted for the name 'RedAlert' from all the entries. The name was unveiled during the festive opening on 20th January 2016 and the vehicle was subsequently put into service.
Fire Technical Research Team
We also have a Fire Technical Research Team exhibition in addition to a multimedia show. This exhibition showcases real causes of fire. For example, it includes a nightlight and a power strip which were the cause of a real fire. This instantly makes the importance of fire safety incredibly tangible for the visitor.
Would you like an interactive show for your organisation too?
Would you also like to organise a fantastic interactive show, or perhaps fancy a sparring session about another fire safe living projecten? You are more than welcome in FireWare's brainstorming room. Many a projecten (including the RedAlert) has been launched from here!
