These two things cause 50% of house fires during the holiday season
HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — The long-awaited holiday season has finally arrived -- but, before you deck the halls and get ready to rock around the Christmas tree, fire officials want to make sure that you're enjoying the festivities safely. Before you go to plug, place or wrap decorations anywhere in your home, make sure you aren't creating a fire hazard. Reynolds said there are several precautions he and the fire department urge you to take with your holiday decorations. He said that the two everyday household items that create the biggest risk are candles and extension cords. “When it comes to Christmas fires -- Christmas decorations catching on fire [and] candles are involved 50% of the time,” said Henrico Fire Battalion Chief Doug Reynolds. When you're using extension cords to power your decorations, experts like Reynolds ask that you use them how they're meant to be used. ‘Light Up the Tracks’ returns to Ashland this weekend with grand illumination event “A lot of times, what we see [that] people get in trouble with is we call 'daisy-chaining,'” Reynolds said. “It's an extension cord [plugged into] an extension cord [plugged into] an extension cord -- and that causes these things to overheat.” Another reminder: don't forget about that "holiday centerpiece," the Christmas tree. “This one is an artificial tree,” Reynolds said, pointing to his family tree. “They tend to be safer. You want to have it 36 inches from anything that's a heat source.” Before you reach out for the next box of lights, experts like Reynolds say you need to make sure they meet the regulated safety standards. “Make sure that you look for [things] like the UL label, because what that's going to tell you [is that] it has at least met some testing standards here in the United States," Reynolds said. "That's what I'm going to be looking for on anything that I'm going to buy." Festival of Lights to bring holiday cheer to Powhatan Another thing that people tend to forget to do when they are decorating is to test out the lights. Reynolds said you should plug in any holiday lights before you hang them up to make sure they do not have a short in them. Finally, when you do go to hang up your holiday decor, use plastic or metal hooks. It's also important to remember not to use staples, as it could cause a shortage and start a fire. “You have to have your smoke detector -- and you need to have a working smoke detector,” Reynolds said. “Without a doubt, it is the most important thing you can have in your house.”
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HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — The long-awaited holiday season has finally arrived -- but, before you deck the halls and get ready to rock around the Christmas tree, fire officials want to make sure that you're enjoying the festivities safely.
Before you go to plug, place or wrap decorations anywhere in your home, make sure you aren't creating a fire hazard.
Reynolds said there are several precautions he and the fire department urge you to take with your holiday decorations. He said that the two everyday household items that create the biggest risk are candles and extension cords.
“When it comes to Christmas fires -- Christmas decorations catching on fire [and] candles are involved 50% of the time,” said Henrico Fire Battalion Chief Doug Reynolds.
When you're using extension cords to power your decorations, experts like Reynolds ask that you use them how they're meant to be used.
‘Light Up the Tracks’ returns to Ashland this weekend with grand illumination event
“A lot of times, what we see [that] people get in trouble with is we call 'daisy-chaining,'” Reynolds said. “It's an extension cord [plugged into] an extension cord [plugged into] an extension cord -- and that causes these things to overheat.”
Another reminder: don't forget about that "holiday centerpiece," the Christmas tree.
“This one is an artificial tree,” Reynolds said, pointing to his family tree. “They tend to be safer. You want to have it 36 inches from anything that's a heat source.”
Before you reach out for the next box of lights, experts like Reynolds say you need to make sure they meet the regulated safety standards.
“Make sure that you look for [things] like the UL label, because what that's going to tell you [is that] it has at least met some testing standards here in the United States," Reynolds said. "That's what I'm going to be looking for on anything that I'm going to buy."
Festival of Lights to bring holiday cheer to Powhatan
Another thing that people tend to forget to do when they are decorating is to test out the lights. Reynolds said you should plug in any holiday lights before you hang them up to make sure they do not have a short in them.
Finally, when you do go to hang up your holiday decor, use plastic or metal hooks. It's also important to remember not to use staples, as it could cause a shortage and start a fire.
“You have to have your smoke detector -- and you need to have a working smoke detector,” Reynolds said. “Without a doubt, it is the most important thing you can have in your house.”
