Those play fire helmets handed out to kids by firefighters just got a whole lot more environmentally friendly in Collier County.
The North Collier Fire Control & Rescue District is the first fire department in Florida to introduce play helmets made of plant fibers, and kids are giving them high marks.
Firefighter and public information officer for North Collier Fire department Heather Mazurkiewicz asked a couple of them recently how they liked them.
"Have you got plastic helmets from other departments before?" she asked three kids named Nate, Zach and Mia.
"Yes, we just went to the sand sculpting contest, and they had the plastic ones. Both of ours got broken on the first day," said Nate.
Zach thumped one on his leg and declared it to be "rock solid."
Manufactured by Better Choice Costumes — a California company started by a retired firefighter — the helmets are used as an educational tool to spark conversations about home fire safety and to build connections between the fire department and the community.
Considering that traditional plastic helmets are rarely recycled and end up in landfills, they add to the approximately 65 pounds of plastic waste produced by Floridians every year. The plant-based helmets eliminate a little of that waste.
North Collier Fire department talks to tens of thousands of children and families at outreach events every year through school programs, public events and safety demonstrations.
