Rachel Cheek, a nurse who lives in Alabaster, saw the sign outside Alabaster Fire Station No. 3 and knew she had to take advantage of the free service being advertised outside.

So, Cheek pulled into the station Thursday, May 6 and had the car seat for her first daughter, Mary Michael, installed by the Alabaster firefighters.

“I think it’s wonderful,” Cheek said of the service offered by the AFD. “I wanted to make sure we had it installed correctly. The way we had it was a little loose, and this is just extra security.”

In total, the Alabaster Fire Department installed 16 child car seats Thursday, said Lt. Harold Mitchell.

Mitchell was the first Alabaster firefighter to earn his child safety seat installation certification, and now every member of the department is certified in the program.

The Alabaster and Trussville Fire Departments are the only two departments in the area where every firefighter is certified to install car seats.

Mitchell said checkpoints like the one Thursday are just another way the AFD can give back to the community.

“We had people coming by anyways, so we decided to start organizing a day and time for people to come by, although they can always come by and we’ll install the seat as long as we’re here and not out on a call,” Mitchell said.

In addition to installing car seats, the department also does regular blood pressure checks for any resident who comes by needing to have theirs checked.

“Those are just two of the services we perform for the public,” Mitchell said.

On average, Mitchell said the department installs approximately 30-40 car seats a month, while also performing 60-80 blood pressure checks for citizens.