First through third graders will spend three mornings next week learning how to stop, drop and roll, about kitchen safety, and how to dial 911 for help. The Miami Beach Fire Department, with support from the Miami Beach Department of Parks, Facilities, Fleet and Beaches, is hosting the 39th Annual Children's Fire Safety Festival from Tuesday through Thursday next week, running each day from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The festival lands at the Miami Beach Convention Center's Lincoln Ballroom on the first floor, located at 1901 Convention Center Drive, according to Miami's Community News. An opening ceremony kicks things off Tuesday at 9 a.m., setting the stage for what organizers describe as a chance for kids to “Learn Not to Burn” through five interactive learning stations built around practical, age-appropriate lessons.
Five Stations, Real-World Skills
Students take part in hands-on activities at five stations covering Stop, Drop and Roll, fire prevention inside the home, kitchen and bathroom safety, and guidance on how and when to call 911, the outlet reports. One station features an interactive 911 simulation, giving kids a feel for what it's actually like to place an emergency call rather than just hearing the instructions secondhand.
The goal, per the same report, is to arm children with practical emergency knowledge and lifesaving fire safety skills they can carry with them well beyond the three-day event. Miami Beach Fire Chief Digna Abello said teaching children about fire safety at a young age gives them skills that can stay with them for a lifetime.
A Countywide Effort Behind the Scenes
The festival is a collaborative effort between the Miami Burn Center, which is located at the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial, and fire rescue agencies from throughout Miami-Dade County. Participating agencies include Miami Beach Fire Department, City of Miami Fire Rescue, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, Coral Gables Fire Rescue, City of Hialeah Fire Rescue, Key Biscayne Fire Rescue and Homestead Air Reserve Base Fire Rescue, according to the report.
Chief Abello added that the department is proud to host the festival and work with its partners to make fire prevention education engaging and memorable for thousands of students. This year's edition comes after National Fire Prevention Week, observed October 4-10, amid a broader push for fire-safety awareness across the region this month.
How This Year Compares to Past Festivals
The festival has deep roots in Miami-Dade's fire-safety calendar. In 2023, Miami Dade College's North Campus hosted the 36th edition of the event alongside City of Miami Fire-Rescue, running similar daily sessions from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and expecting roughly 2,500 children in first through third grade, according to a Miami Dade College announcement. That year's five stations, staffed by educators from Miami Fire-Rescue, Miami Beach Fire Department, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, Coral Gables Fire Department, Hialeah Fire Rescue, Key Biscayne Fire Rescue, Homestead Air Reserve Base Fire Department and the UHealth Jackson Burn Center, covered everything from planning home exit routes to practicing the “crawl low under smoke” maneuver alongside stop, drop and roll drills and hands-on 911 simulations.
The 2023 festival carried the theme “Pay Attention to Prevention: Cooking Safety Starts with You,” reflecting the recurring emphasis on kitchen hazards that remains part of this year's curriculum as well. The City of Miami Beach has described the festival as something typically held twice each year at different locations around Miami-Dade County, reaching thousands of kindergarten through third grade students from public and private schools, per the city's fire prevention programs page.
Part of a Broader Fire Safety Push
This year's Children's Fire Safety Festival also arrives alongside national fire-safety messaging aimed at a very modern hazard. The National Fire Protection Association has made lithium-ion battery charging safety the centerpiece of its 2026 Fire Prevention Week focus, working to better educate the public on how to charge devices safely, according to the NFPA. The 2026 observance runs October 4-10.
For now, the youngest residents of Miami Beach and surrounding communities get the more hands-on version of that message, learning through interactive stations and a 911 simulation rather than press releases. The lessons, organizers hope, will stick with them long after the Lincoln Ballroom empties out Thursday afternoon.
