The Arizona City Fire District’s 2025 Summer Water and Safety Days came to an end after weeks of teaching kids how to be safe during the summer while providing plenty of fun. The annual event, facilitated by the fire district, and made possible with the support of local community members through donations, sets up massive inflated water slides, castles and spraying fire hydrants to keep the kids cool as they run around in 100-degree heat.
This year, according to Shirley Sutherland, ACFD administrative assistant, there were more young children and young families than in previous years — though in total, she said the event has averaged over 150 kids per day, which is similar to turnout numbers in the past. To accommodate the increase in younger children, the infant and toddler area was increased from 10-feet by 10-feet to 10-feet by 20-feet — this year, the area was increased again to 10-feet by 30-feet.
The event was created 10 years ago by Fire Chief Jeff Heaton in order to have a fun, educational summer event, one that might address increased incidents involving local youths during the summer. Every kid is served lunch at the end of each event at noon. Before this year’s event, Heaton spoke about the noticeable impact the program has had: “Since the program’s inception, our statistics involving children in the summer time have decreased, therefore showing our community-focused summer program was successful at decreasing incidents with children.”
