While some students may take fire safety knowledge for granted, Timothy Kirby, safety specialist for Environmental Health and Safety, said he wants people to understand the reality of how fast a fire can spread.
"I want to dispel the myth about fires, that they are a rare occurrence and that they happen slowly," Kirby said.
Ball State's Environmental Health and Safety board and the Fire Department are sponsoring a mock burn demonstration to raise awareness of fire safety and Fire Prevention Month.
The demonstration will be held today at 10 a.m. on the LaFollette Field.
Kirby said the purpose of the event is to show how a fire can spread and emphasize how important it is for students to learn how to evacuate a building immediately.
He said he also wants students to be aware of the preventive methods the school is taking and the fire prevention technology used to help in the case of an emergency.
"The lack of knowledge among people about the dangers of a fire is one the main reason for this burn demonstration," Kirby said.
The event will show two made-up rooms resembling residence hall rooms. The mock rooms will have similar furniture that can be found in your typical dorm.
One room will have a sprinkler system and one won't, to show how fast a fire can burn and how the fire prevention technology, such as sprinklers and smoke detectors, work.
The event will be assisted by two fire fighting units from the Muncie Fire Department.
Eric Wilson, chief of firefighter training, said more than anything people should go to the event and learn the basic fire safety procedures.
"Too many times students ignore the alarm," he said. "We want to raise the awareness that it only takes one time for it to be the real deal."
Kirby said the event is open to the public, not just students.
"This event is not just about dorms, it is about fire and the damage a fire can do," he said.
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