Class 9 student develops fire safety device

A ninth standard student of a government high school in Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu, has developed a fire safety device with a heat sensor.

Demonstrating the working of the instrument at an event organised by ‘Beyond Carlton,’ a people’s initiative for fire safety, here on Saturday, M Jayakumar said that developed the device after his mother suffered burns while working at a fire cracker unit. Jayakumar has been named as a ‘Young Scientist’ by Siva Subramanian, a scientist with the Isro.

“The device has a heat sensor which is activated when the temperature goes up turning on the indicator, alarm and motor,” Jayakumar said, while explaining the working of the equipment he developed six months ago.

“I want my mother to be safe and also my society. Hence, took up the project . Along with the support of teachers, I researched about fire safety devices on the Internet,” he added. Jayakumar said that around 95 per cent of his classmates' parents were employed in fire cracker units. He narrated a recent incident in his district wherein about 10 people died while working in one such unit.

Karunai Das, a science teacher who helped Jayakumar in his project, said that his next plan was to  develop the model on a larger scale.

Two outstanding fire service men from the City, Venkatesh Nayak and S N Nagesh , who saved lives during fire accidents were felicitated on the occasion. While Nayak rescued two lives during Orion Mall fire tragedy, Nagesh rescued people during a fire mishap at Manyata Tech Park.