Holiday Fire Safety Check

Each year, we hear of home fires occurring during the holiday season. Sometimes lives are lost. Sometimes an entire home is lost to flames. And visions of little ones whose presents are gone can generate a longing to help.

Holiday fires are not inevitable. Use this advice to keep them from happening.

• Have a working smoke detector (test it) just outside the kitchen, near bedrooms, and on every level of your home.
• Place a chemical fire extinguisher near the kitchen range and make sure everyone knows how to operate it.
• Degrease the top of the stove, the oven, broiler, and range hood. Grease can ignite and cause a fire.
• When preparing a big dinner, make sure only one high-wattage appliance is plugged into an outlet or a circuit. If you have the microwave, coffee pot, electric fry pan, and toaster running at the same time, you could be in danger.
• If it’s very cold and you decide to use an electric heater, be sure it is not positioned near anything flammable including curtains and decorations. Unplug it when you go to bed.
• Don’t overload circuits with lighted decorations. Plug decorations into a power strip that will shut off if overloaded and has a surge protector.
• When opening gifts, handle wrappings with care. Never allow combustible wrappings to pile up near a heat source. Make sure no one is smoking near such flammables.
• Be smart with candles. Put them out when you will not be nearby. Don’t place a candle inside a bookshelf.
• Never burn gift wrappings or a natural Christmas tree in your fireplace. It could cause a flash fire or a chimney fire.