Dev and the Smoke Alarm
Topic: Fire
Dev was building a robot out of blocks on his bedroom floor.
It was a quiet evening. His sister Anika was reading in the next room, and Amma and Achan were downstairs.
“One more arm,” Dev said to himself, “and he will be finished.”
Then he noticed something strange.
A smell. It was not like cooking. It smelled sharp and burnt.
Dev sniffed again. His tummy felt tight.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The smoke alarm in the hallway began to sound, loud and fast.
For a moment, Dev froze. His robot was almost finished. He wanted to look for where the smell was coming from.
Then he remembered the family fire drill they had practised last month.
Smell smoke or hear the alarm? Leave. Do not look for the fire. Do not hide.
Dev left his robot on the floor.
“Anika!” he shouted. “The smoke alarm! Smoke! Let’s go!”
Anika dropped her book and ran to the doorway. A thin grey haze floated near the ceiling of the hallway.
“Stay low,” Dev said, remembering the plan. “The air is clearer near the floor.”
They bent down and moved quickly towards the stairs. They used the exit they had practised, not the one with the haze.
Downstairs, Achan was already at the front door.
“This way!” he called. “Everyone outside!”
Amma took Dev’s and Anika’s hands, and the four of them hurried out into the cool evening air.
They walked straight to their family meeting place, the big mango tree by the gate.
“Everyone here?” Amma asked, counting. “Dev, Anika, Achan, me. Yes. Everyone is safe.”
Dev’s heart was beating fast. “My robot is still upstairs,” he said.
“We never go back inside,” Achan said gently. “Not for toys, not for anything. Things can be replaced. You cannot.”
Dev nodded. It was hard, but he knew it was true.
Achan took out his phone and called for emergency help from the safe distance of the tree. Dev and Anika waited with Amma, close together.
Soon, the fire fighters arrived. They went inside while the family stayed outside.
A little while later, one of the fire fighters came back out.
“It was an old phone charger that overheated,” she explained. “It is all dealt with now. You did exactly the right thing by leaving quickly and waiting outside.”
Dev smiled with relief.
When the fire fighters said it was safe, the family went back inside together. The smoke alarm was quiet again.
Dev’s robot was still on the floor, safe and sound, with one arm still missing.
“I am glad we practised,” Dev said. “My legs knew what to do even when I was scared.”
Amma hugged him. “That is exactly why we practise.”
That night, Dev finished the robot’s arm. Then he helped Achan put a new sticker on the wall by the door. It showed the family’s two ways out, and a little drawing of the mango tree.
SAFETY LESSON
SMELL SMOKE OR HEAR THE ALARM? GET OUT.
Do not look for the fire. Do not hide.
STAY LOW AND GO TO YOUR MEETING PLACE.
Use the exit your family has practised.
STAY OUT. TELL AN ADULT.
Never go back inside for toys or pets. Adults call for emergency help.
PARENT / TEACHER NOTE
Use the story to encourage calm discussion. Children remember what they have practised, so walk through your own home’s exits and meeting place after reading. Discussion questions:
- Why did Dev leave his robot behind?
- Why is it important to stay low and use the exit your family practised?
- Where is our family’s meeting place outside?