Christmas is a festive time of year but the holidays can also present a unique set of fire hazards for local emergency services personnel.
Fire departments in the Tri-Cities are asking residents to be careful with Christmas trees, decorations and wrapping papers, as well as heat sources like lights and extension chords.
Firefighters also suggest:
Extinguishing candles when leaving a room or going to sleep;
Keeping candles at least 30 cm away from anything that can burn, such as clothing, bedding, books, curtains or Christmas trees;
If a power outage occurs, use a flashlight instead of candles;
Space heaters should always be plugged directly into an outlet and extension cords should never be used;
Combustibles should also be kept away from Christmas trees;
All lights should be checked and any damaged or frayed wires should be discarded;
and proper clips instead of staples should be used when Christmas lights.
Residents should also make sure they have working smoke alarms.
