WARN - About Us


	Fact Sheet about Water Safety WARN Leadership What is a Retention Pond?

	The History of WARN In 2000, after the drowning of a young child in a Franklin Township retention pond, Sergeant Jerry Richert, dive team coordinator of the Franklin Township fire department, realized the need for a community awareness program that addressed the potential dangers of these
ponds and other bodies of water. The Water Awareness in Residential Neighborhoods (WARN) program was developed to meet this need. Though the driving force for the creation of the program was retention pond safety, it also includes other topics such as the identification of water hazards in the home (buckets, tubs, toilets, etc.), pool safety, ice, and other common but potentially dangerous bodies of water.
In the summer of 2000, within a month of the Franklin Township tragedy, the drowning death of a six-year-old boy in a Fishers retention pond sparked responses from both the Town Council and local Fire Department. The Town of Fishers became the first community in the state of Indiana to enact legislation that called for mandatory signage around all retention ponds.
In addition, the Fishers Town Council recognized the Fishers Fire Department for the water safety program it had developed. The Fishers and Franklin Township Fire Departments met in the summer of 2001 and compared presentations, they began the process of combining the best elements of each presentation to create the current version of the WARN program. This version can easily be adopted and implemented by any fire department or similar safety organization. During the process of creating the currrent WARN program, a coalition of area fire departments and businesses became charter members and sponsors of the WARN program. This coalition helped to create additional support materials and an educational video. The support and enthusiasm for WARN has been extremely encouraging. It has continued to develop and has been adopted by fire departments and other interested organizations not only across Indiana, but throughout the nation.
	The WARN Program The WARN program has two powerpoint presentations, one geared towards adults and the other toward children. The youth program has been presented in numerous schools since its creation. The participating schools have responded with positive comments and WARN has become a regular presentation at some schools.
The WARN program has been presented in auditorium, classroom, and outdoor settings. The adult program can be shared with fire departments, churches, homeowners associations, local businesses, and community groups, to name just a few. The WARN presentations are flexible enough that you can add your own props and local perspective to enhance the information on each slide. In addition, extra information is included in the notes section of some of the slides, which can be used for preparation ahead of time. The WARN program is a non-for-profit program designed to support itself through the sale of packaged educational materials to any interested parties. The packaged materials contain a CD Rom, which includes the different versions of the PowerPoint presentation, two copies of our Diver Dan videos and member access to the WARN website. The startup kit also includes a supply of tri-fold brochures, geared toward educating an adult audience, and children’s activity booklets. You can get more of these items by ordering them from our website. You can also have them printed locally using PDF files supplied on your CD or by downloading them from the members section of our website. When the WARN program was developed, it was with the intention of providing all of the educational tools necessary to help convey the important message of water safety for children and parents alike. We believe that the educational package that has been compiled for the WARN program meets those needs. We want to hear your suggestions and questions about the WARN program. If you have the program, we'd especially like to hear about how you're making it work where you are. Please visit our Contacts page and drop us a message. Thank you for your interest in the WARN program.

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