VIDEO: The Hendersonville Fire Department has added a new tool to its toolbox. The department has placed โsensory kits,โ or backpacks with calming materials for people with autism or other disabilities, onto each of their fire engines.
The kits are a first for any first-responding agency in Hendersonville. Behind it all is 24-year-old Jenna Kull, who decided to take her experiences and knowledge as a special education teacher, and pack it into one place.
โIn special education, medical needs are pretty common,โ Kull said. โIn my particular classroom, I did have a few students with certain medical needs, and there have been multiple times where the firemen had to respond to my classroom.โ
โPeople with disabilities, they act a different way,โ Kull continued. โThey arenโt able to express what hurts or what doesnโt feel good or whatโs going on around them. Itโs a very scary situation.โ
The Hendersonville Fire Department began working on these backpacks with Kull about a year ago, following an emergency response from Station 4.
