Keeping your family and friends safe should be at the top of everyone’s holiday wish list. Local fire and police departments, as well as the American Red Cross, offer many tips on how to keep household accidents at bay through the holiday season.
For the cook: Never leave a pot unattended on the stove. Stand by your pan! Don’t leave boiling or frying pots alone to do their magic. Stay involved in the cooking process. Wear tight, fitted sleeves — nothing that can brush against a flame and catch fire. Keep pot lids handy to smother an oil fire.
For the Decorator: Make sure all festive lighting, both indoor and outdoor, satisfies safety standards and is appropriately wired to protect against weather and wet. Be sure all outdoor lighting is secure against wind amd be sure to plug into ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) safe for outdoor use.
If you have a recently cut Christmas tree, make sure it is appropriately mounted in a tree stand. You’ll need to replenish the water at the base of the tree every day. Place ornaments high enough on the tree to keep out of reach of curious toddlers who could cut themelves or swallow something dangerous.
Candles are a lovely addition to the holiday mood. Be sure that your lit candles have a one-foot, non-flammable area around them, a circle of safety. Never leave candles lit overnight or leave a room with burning candles. Keep lighted candles out of the reach of small children and pets.
The Red Cross Los Angeles Region offers the following additional tips on how to prevent fires:
- Keep all potential sources of fuel like paper, clothing, bedding, curtains or rugs at least three feet away from space heaters, stoves, or fireplaces.
- If you must use a space heater, place it on a level, hard and nonflammable surface (such as ceramic tile floor), not on rugs or carpets or near bedding or drapes.
- Keep children and pets away from space heaters. When buying a space heater, look for models that shut off automatically if the heater falls over as another safety measure.
- Never use a cooking range or oven to heat your home.
- Keep fire in your fireplace by using a glass or metal fire screen large enough to catch sparks and rolling logs.
- Have wood and coal stoves, fireplaces, chimneys, and furnaces professionally inspected and cleaned once a year.
“Planning for fire emergencies is important,” said Paul Schulz, CEO, American Red Cross Los Angeles Region. “Make sure all household members know two ways to escape from every room of your home, and set up a meeting place outside in case of fire. Practice escaping from your home at least twice a year and at different times of the day. Teach household members to stop, drop and roll if their clothing should catch on fire.”
The Red Cross wishes you and yours a safe holiday season. These tips will help guarantee a great end of year and a good start to 2012.
Tags: fire safety tips, house fires
