More than 200 orphans of different charities took part at a fire prevention drill at the Aramco awareness program for fire safety and security on Tuesday as part of International Civil Defense Day.

The two-week awareness program recently took off at the Mall of Arabia and will continue until March 30 with the aim of spreading awareness on the importance of fire detectors at home, in addition to the use of fire extinguishers. The use and effective control of fire extinguishers in case of fire is an important life lesson.

“We came here to learn how to act if fire breaks out, why smoke detectors are important and what we should do in times of fire-related disaster to help others,” said Akeel Ahmed, a visitor to the Aramco awareness program. “We enjoyed learning about fire drills. A member of the civil defense taught us how to act if fire breaks out at home or in surrounding areas. My friends and I thoroughly enjoyed the practice and decided that we will join civil defense when we grow up,” he added.

Another visitor, Abdul Rahman, also said that attending this awareness program was fun for him and his friends. “This exhibition not only provided us information about fire alarms and fire detectors, it also gave us a glance into the life of civil defense officers and their duties."

Samir Nasruddin, director at Aramco affairs, said that Aramco is always keen to integrate orphans from charitable organizations and people with special needs from rehabilitation centers, as they are the social responsibility of the community.

He further said that the two-week long campaign will continue spreading awareness about the importance of having a smoke detector at home and offers the latest preventive methods for avoiding fire.