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12/12/2018 11:01 PMAs the holiday season approaches, the all-volunteer officers and firefighters of Madison Hose Co., No. 1 encourage residents to take a few minutes to review these holiday safety tips.
Tree Maintenance
Select fresh trees—choose a tree with fresh, green needles that do not fall off when touched.
Keep trees fresh by watering daily.
When using a fresh tree, cut off a minimum two inches from the bottom of the trunk before installing the tree in the stand.
Two of every five (40 percent) home Christmas tree fires started in the living room, family room, or den. All of the fatalities and roughly three-quarters (72 percent) of the injuries resulted from fires started in this area.
Dry trees are a serious fire hazard. Find a YouTube video from the National Institute of Science and Technology to bring home the importance of daily watering (search “Christmas Tree Fire: Watered Tree vs. Dry Tree”).
Electric Concerns
Inspect electrical decorations for damage before use. Cracked or damaged sockets, loose or bare wires, and loose connections may cause a serious shock or start a fire.
Do not overload electrical outlets. Overloaded electrical outlets and faulty wires are a common cause of holiday fires. Avoid overloading outlets and plug only one high-wattage device into each outlet at a time. Electrical distribution or lighting equipment was involved in 43 percent of home Christmas tree fires.
Never connect more than three strings of incandescent lights. More than three strands may not only blow a fuse but can also cause a fire.
Protect cords from damage. To avoid shock or fire hazards, cords should never be pinched by furniture, forced into small spaces such as doors and windows, placed under rugs, located near heat sources, or attached by nails or staples.
Know your cords. Some lights are only for indoor or outdoor use, but not both.
Turn off, unplug, and extinguish all decorations when going to sleep or leaving the house. Unattended candles are the cause of one in five home candle fires. Half of home fire deaths occur between the hours of 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).
Decorations
Use battery-operated candles. Candles start almost half of home decoration fires. More than a third of home decoration fires are started by candles.
Check decorations for certification label. Decorations not bearing a label from an independent testing laboratory such as Underwriters Laboratories (UL), Canadian Standards Association (CSA), or Intertek (ETL) have not been tested for safety and could be hazardous.
Fireplaces
Burn only seasoned, hardwood logs in the fireplace. Don’t burn trees, wreaths or wrapping paper in the fireplace.
Clean your fireplace flue. Check and clean the chimney and fireplace area at least once a year—more often if you burn a lot of wood. Creosote build-up is the primary cause for chimney fires.
Keep combustibles at least three feet from heat sources. A heat source that was too close to the decoration was a factor in half of home fires that began with decorations.
And always check your smoke alarms. Make sure there is a working smoke alarm on every level of your home, inside bedrooms and near sleeping areas. Review your fire escape plan with family members and guests.
While its members are trained and ready to help if needed, it is Madison Hose Co. No. 1’s sincere desire that residents, their family, and friends enjoy this holiday season safely.