A celebration dedicated to International Children's Day was held in Vitebsk

Firefighting equipment based on bicycles and strollers, a crawling race, competitions for accurate "shooting" from a hose, flash mobs, contests, and origami cranes from the "Open Hearts" foundation... All this was at a celebration in Vitebsk dedicated to International Children's Day.

A large-scale and vibrant event on Victory Square as part of the republican campaign of the Ministry of Emergency Situations "Don't leave children alone!" was organized by the regional department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the Belarusian Republican Youth Union, and the Belgosstrakh branch for the Vitebsk region.

What boy doesn't dream of sitting behind the wheel of a fire truck? And it turned out that girls are also not against getting acquainted with special equipment. The children had fun on interactive platforms, trying on the rescuer profession, and earned special coupons that they could exchange for prizes.

Some, in professional gear, conquered heights made of several boxes; others were not afraid to enter the smoke screen and accurately direct a stream of water from a fire hose at a special target.

Those who did not dare, even under the supervision of professionals, to participate in such extreme attractions earned coveted points by tying shoelaces in gauntlets, assembling autonomous fire alarms at speed, and demonstrating their knowledge of safe behavior at the information and propaganda platform "We are proud that we taught."

It is noteworthy that even toddlers who cannot yet walk independently did not remain on the sidelines of the holiday of childhood and safety.

Together with their helper parents, they participated in a crawling race. Four boys took part in the start – Maxim Pechyonkin, Andrey Yushkovsky, Dmitry Glutkin, Pavel Semenov, and a young lady Anastasia Gerashchenko, who covered the distance faster than her rivals and finished first. As her mother Olga said, the one-year-old winner is friends with sports; they have been attending special fitness classes for infants almost since birth.

The most spectacular part of the event was the parade of participants in the open competition-review "Fire Truck of the Future," which was held for the second time this year.

“We have slightly expanded the scope of the competition, allowing not only baby strollers and tricycles but also pedal cars to participate. 13 crews submitted applications, having decorated their children's transport in the style of fire emergency rescue vehicles. An obligatory decorative element is the emergency service numbers 101 or 112; the rest depended on the designers' imagination,” said **Natalia Turkova, head of the propaganda and public relations center of the regional department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations**.

The Danilevich family approached the competition with expertise and hope for victory. Last year, the Ministry of Emergency Situations driver Dmitry and his wife took third place, so they thoroughly prepared for this year's competition, converting their younger son Zakhar's bicycle into special equipment, thinking through every detail, even a fire extinguisher, a shovel, and a uniform for their young rescuer.

As part of the celebration, the "Childhood Should Belong to Everyone" campaign by the "Open Hearts" charitable foundation was also held. Children were given balloons with the organization's logo, and adults received origami cranes with wishes and brochures with information on preventing abortions and protecting the life and health of unborn children. As explained by Ivan Puzanov, the organization's deputy director, the volunteers aimed to draw attention to pressing issues of the country's demographic security in this way.

Natalia Kamleva. Photos by Anton STEPANISHCHEV. "Vitebskiye Vesti".