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By GRAHAM JAEHNIG
gjaehnig@mininggazette.com
MOHAWK -- The Keweenaw County Sheriff's Office is hosting its Keweenaw County Public Safety Day. Now in its sixth year, the free event will again take place in Mohawk's Allouez Township Park, on Saturday, July 22, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The bouncy house will be back again, and games for kids, along with demonstrations by firefighters dressing in firefighting equipment. There will also be equipment and vehicles of the Keweenaw County Sheriff Off-Road Rescue on display.
Volunteer fire departments from Allouez Township, Copper Harbor, Eagle Harbor, Lac La Belle and Sherman Township will be present with trucks and equipment, and there will be a Jaws of Life demonstration, as well. The County Road Commission will have some of their big equipment on the grounds, as they did last year, and Mercy EMS will have a vehicle present, too. There will also be demonstrations by firefighters dressing their special clothing while using air packs and masks.
There are a couple of new things to see this year, said Sheriff Curt Pennala, including Keweenaw Search and Rescue.
"New this year, too," said Pennala, "we're going to have a demonstration called 'Stop the Bleed," which is a national program on first-aid for wounds. The kids will learn how to apply a tourniquet."
Retired Keweenaw County Sheriff Bill Luokkanen will be cooking the hot dogs again this year, which along with chips, pop and ice cream, are free.
Pennala said the annual event has grown in popularity and attendance every year. Although the focus of Public Safety Day is toward children, more and more adults are in attendance.
"We've seen an increase in the number of kids and adults who've come out to visit us every year," Pennala said. "It's great to see. It's a great event for the community at large to come out and meet the men and women who are really dedicated to keeping the community safe, whether that be the firefighters, law enforcement, paramedics and even our road crews."
While the event takes about a year to plan and organize, Pennala said it takes about a week to set up the park for the event.