Staying Out Means Staying Alive!
Students at Walnut Creek Intermediate School joined forces with the County Flood Control District recently to spread the word about Creek and Channel Safety. Dubbed the StayOut, StayAlive! campaign, the outreach effort engaged the schools’ Leadership and Art classes in teaching others about the dangers of local creeks and waterways.
Swift-water Rescuers from the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District visited the campus to tell the students how dangerous fast-moving stormwater can be, and to demonstrate how hard it is to pull someone out of a flood channel. Prizes were awarded to the winners of the Art classes’ StayOut, StayAlive! poster contest. Winning posters will be hung around the county in high-visibility locations near District flood control channels.
Walnut Creek Intermediate School is a perfect platform from which to share the StayOut, StayAlive! message. The school is bisected by the Walnut Creek flood control channel which the kids cross daily via two foot bridges. Furthermore, two former students from the school perished in a flood channel rafting accident in 2011. Flood control channels crisscross the entire region, and several pass near schools. Because these channels collect run-off from small creeks, some of which are on private property, there are dozens of potential access points. The District has done extensive safety stenciling, signage and fencing to dissuade people from entering the waterways and to forewarn them of the dangers. The StayOut, StayAlive! schools outreach campaign helps spread this message each year at the onset of the rainy season by sending safety information to each school in the County and holding special events such as the one held at Walnut Creek Intermediate School.
