Cota wins poster contest
Warren County High School junior Miguel Cota has been named a winner of a state-wide fire prevention poster contest sponsored by the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office.
Cota and his fellow poster contest winners were recognized Sunday at a banquet held in their honor in Nashville.
Held in conjunction with Fire Prevention Week, this year’s poster contest had the same theme: “Team Up for Fire Safety.” Students in grades kindergarten through 12 were given the opportunity to enter the contest by illustrating this theme, which encouraged citizens to work with others in their communities to be better prepared to prevent or, if disaster should occur, survive a home fire by taking basic steps like installing and testing smoke alarms, creating and practicing home escape plans and looking for home hazards.
“The poster contest is a fun and effective way to educate children and their families about Fire Prevention Week,” said Dick Garner, director for the state’s Bomb and Arson Unit. “Fire Prevention Week is crucial because it stresses the importance of preparation as the main element in fire safety. Eighty-five percent of all fires occur in the home. The contest can help us change this statistic because while the kids create their posters, they also learn critical fire-safe behaviors.”
In all, 15 poster contest winners were chosen from across the state. They were selected in November by a panel of judges made up of fire prevention professionals. Each winner received a blue ribbon, a $50 savings bond and a certificate of recognition signed by Gov. Don Sundquist.