Calgary’s newest ambassador for fire safety has been chosen, with 9-year-old Kyrie Rajic taking the mantle to share a message of being fire safe in the city.

Rajic’s appointment as Junior Fire Chief of the Calgary Fire Department continued a long-standing partnership between the CFD and the Alberta Children’s Hospital to select children who have been patients as part of the program.

The program, which has been in operations since 2016, has been used by the Calgary Fire Department as a way to promote their annual Fire Prevention Week programming, along with reaching young people with the importance of avoiding fires, and being prepared when can and will appear.

“This is a very significant role, and we don’t take this appointment lightly. There has been a very long selection process, let me assure you,” said Calgary Fire Chief Steve Dongworth.

“In partnership with Alberta Children’s Hospital, we’ve chosen this year’s Junior fire chief, an enthusiastic and respectful young man. He’s excited to be able to spread the message about the importance of fire prevention to his friends, his family and peers.”

As part of his first role as an ambassador, Rajic rode in a fire truck and did his first scrum with the media on the topic of smoke alarms being necessary in everyone’s homes.

He said that he was excited to help make his friends and family safe, and wanted to share the message of not playing with stoves or ovens with other Calgary children.

Over the next year, Rajic will be meeting with school-aged children across Calgary as part of his role as Junior Fire Chief.

His father, Sandro Rajic, said that his son went through some hardships that led to him being a patient at the Alberta Children’s Hospital, but that the staff there saw something in him the same way he and his wife Vivian did.

“I think it’s just on him and who he is,” Sandro said.

“I think he’ll grow massively, as he already has. I think I feel like the future is very bright with him for sure, and this just puts it to the next level.”

Junior Fire Chief a fun way to address a deadly problem

The 2024 Fire Prevention Week topic of having working smoke alarms inside homes was a reflection of the difference between making it safely outside from a fire, or not, said Chief Dongworth.

“Today’s homes burn faster than ever, and you have less than two minutes, very often, to get out of your home in the event of a fire. Working smoke alarms are your best defence in getting out safely,” he said.

The number one cause of house fires in Calgary has been unattended cooking.

“We know from all of our stats and all of the incidents that we respond to that cooking left unattended, especially cooking with oil, is the number one most common indoor accidental source for fires. They’re all preventable,” said Carol Henke, Public Information Officer for the Calgary Fire Department.

“The most important thing is to stay in the kitchen when you’re cooking. Don’t get distracted. Don’t leave the kitchen.”

She said that the fire department typically starts to see more types of fires like chimney fires, candle fires, and electrical fires as the days get colder.

Another source of fires that the CFD is seeing increased numbers of, she said, was from charging lithium-ion batteries.

“They’re becoming so common, and a lot of our gadgets and electronic equipment have them. Think of your cordless drill that you have charging in the garage, it’s really important not to overcharge. Don’t leave things charging when you’re not at home,” Henke said.

“If you drop your phone, check for any damage. If you find that it’s overheating, then it could be damaged, and that could create a fire situation. If you have kids that are charging their cell phones or laptops or iPads in their room, they should never be charging them under their pillow or having their devices under their pillow while they’re plugged in. They need to be charged on a hard surface.”

The smoke alarms, said Henke, should be ULC CSA approved. The Calgary Fire Department has resources to help.

“Every year, our Community Safety Division chooses an area where we go door-to-door as a large group, and we share fire safety information, fire prevention information, and ensure that folks have working smoke alarms and working carbon monoxide alarms. We partner with our friends at ATCO gas, and we hopefully leave everyone’s home safer than when we got there,” she said.

That blitz this year is happening on Oct. 10 in Saddleridge, but Calgarians can phone 311 every day to get current smoke detector information or have their fire-related questions answered by a subject matter expert.