By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

He looks like a pint-sized fire truck, the kind a kid might hop on and drive away, pretending to race to the scene of the flames.

Except this fire truck has a large pair of eyes. And his name is Freddie.

Freddie the Fire Truck is the latest addition to the Peachtree City Fire and Rescue Department's fire safety education team. He's a motorized robot, controlled by remote with speech provided by a nearby firefighter on a headset.

Freddie is already helping get fire safety messages across to young tykes in Peachtree City. He teaches the "stop, drop and roll" technique and the importance of having exit drills at home so safe escape can be made if a fire occurs.

Already, Freddie has shown a knack for drawing the kids' interest.

"They fall in love with Freddie," said Lt. Gary North, who supervises the department's fire and life safety education division. "They'll hug him and follow him around wherever he goes."

Freddie was paid for totally with funds from local businesses and a $1,500 grant from the Georgia Firefighters Burn Foundation, North said. That's the charity local firefighters collect for every year with their boot drive.

Fireman Rob Eidson, who helped organize the project, said he was stunned by how quickly the financial support poured in.

"It's just great to see the community respond like that," Eidson said. "It showed they respect our message."

October will be a busy month for the Fire Department and Freddie it's fire safety month.

Freddie will be on display at the department's open house, scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 14 from noon to 5 p.m. The event also will include a free child identification card program.

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