After the successful collaboration in the development of the RedAlert, the Fire-safe living team and the 24-hour service of the Nijmegen Fire Brigade and FireWare have once again joined forces to realize a spectacular fire-safe living experience. An existing CoPi container of the Gelderland-South Safety Region has been converted into a beautiful new information vehicle: “The house of the van der Werf family”.
In “The House of the Van der Werf family” the public is informed about fire safety through experience. In addition, there is an incentive to take measures to make their own home (more) fireproof. Specific attention is given to the usefulness of closing interior doors, making an escape plan and installing smoke detectors. In this way, an active contribution is made to the mission of the Netherlands Fire Brigade: fewer fires, less damage and fewer victims!
Flight experience in a "real" home
Visitors have three minutes to walk through the house. In these three minutes they search for possible (fire) hazardous situations. The story starts in a neat kitchen area, equipped with all the furniture and equipment you can expect there. There is a real washing machine, combi oven and kitchen, all of which are adapted to the size of the container.
At first glance, there seems to be little going on in the house. However, as soon as the visitors open the door to the next room, they end up in a heavily burned-out part of the house. The floor is burnt, the walls are tarnished and it is dark and warm, as if the fire had been put out not so long ago. This experience is supported by the decor, light, sound, smell and smoke. In this way all senses are stimulated.
The fact that the experience lasts three minutes is a very conscious choice. It is the actual time people have to flee from a house fire. The time visitors have left is indicated in the floor with an LED strip. After the experience of three minutes, the house is so full of smoke that a safe escape is becoming increasingly difficult. Outside, at the entrance, a traffic light automatically indicates whether the information vehicle is ready for the next participant to enter.
Collect data
While walking through the house, a safety message is shared with the participants. This message encourages reflection and action. Afterwards, visitors can answer questions about what they have seen and experienced and about the theme “Flight Safely”. They do this on one of the four mobile pillars, which can be set up outside at a distance from each other. The employees of the Gelderland-South Fire Brigade are present to provide visitors with more information. With the collected data, fire-safe living campaigns in the security region can be organized even better.
Highest possible effort on co-creation
The realization of The House of the Van der Werf family can legitimately be called a co-creation. FireWare took care of the design and staging material. The employees of the safety region involved in the construction then took responsibility for the modification of the container and the actual realization. Obviously this has had a positive impact on the investment amount!
For images of the festive opening, see our news item about the presentation.
