Every so often, we like to go back in time and look at the rich history of the village through footage courtesy of newsreel archive, British Pathé.
Today, we go back to 1936, when St Margaret’s School was teaching its students how to put out fires.
Schools today all have similar, if not identical, fire drills in the case of emergencies. Students are regularly taught to leave their belongings, rush through the nearest fire exit and stand outside in an orderly fashion, calmly waiting for emergency services to reach the premises.
In 1936, however, St Margaret’s students were given slightly different instructions; they were expected to save the school from burning down themselves.
Classic British Pathé footage shows teachers drilling the children on how to put out fires with hoses and rescue each other with ladders.
Unsurprisingly, safety precautions were nowhere near as strict as they are now – children can be seen climbing up and down tall ladders and even sliding down a flimsy chute which stretches from third storey window to the ground, held in place only by fellow students themselves.
To see the footage, go to britishpathe.com/video/girls-fire-brigade-st-margarets-college/query/bushey
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