HOW TO PROTECT YOUR FAMILY AND YOUR PROPERTY FROM Christmas tree fires
Each year, fire
departments respond to an average of 250 structure fires caused by Christmas
trees. Carefully decorating Christmas
trees can help make your holidays safer.
Picking the tree
- If you have an artificial tree, be sure it is labeled, certified, or identified by the manufacturer as fire retardant.
- Choose a tree with fresh, green needles that do not fall off when touched.
Placing the tree
- Before placing the tree in the stand, cut 1" - 2" from the base of the trunk.
- Make sure the tree is at least three feet away from any heat source, like fireplaces, radiators, candles, heat vents or lights.
- Make sure the tree is not blocking an exit.
- Add water to the tree stand. Be sure to add water daily.
Lighting the tree
- Use lights that have the label of an independent testing laboratory. Some lights are only for indoor or outdoor use, but not both.
- Replace any string of lights with worn or broken cords or loose bulb connections. Connect no more than three strands of mini string sets and a maximum of 50 bulbs for screw-in bulbs. Read manufacturer’s instructions for number of LED strands to connect.
- Never use lit candles to decorate the tree.
- Always turn off Christmas tree lights before leaving home or going to bed.
After Christmas
- Get rid of the tree when it begins dropping needles. Dried-out trees are a fire danger and should not be left in the home or garage, or placed outside against the home. Check with your local community to find a recycling program. Bring outdoor electrical lights inside after the holidays to prevent hazards and make them last longer.
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Christmas
tree fires
Carefully decorating
Christmas trees can help make your holidays safer.
Video: This link below contains an NFPA/UL
video demonstrates the flammability of a dry Christmas tree vs. a tree that has
been watered regularly. The video is
a demonstration showing how flammable a dry Christmas tree can be as
opposed to a tree watered regularly. This test was conducted by the National
Fire Protection Association and Underwriters Laboratories.
Facts & figures
· Between 2007-2014, U.S. fire
departments responded to an average of 250 home fires that started with
Christmas trees per year. These fires
caused an average of 14 deaths, 26 injuries, and $18.3 million in direct
property damage annually.
· On average, one of every 40 reported
home fires that began with a Christmas tree resulted in a death, compared to an
average of one death per 150 total reported home fires.
· Electrical problems were factors in
one-third (32%) of Christmas tree home structure fires.
· Two of every five (39%) home Christmas
tree fires started in the living room, family room, or den.
Source: NFPA's "Home
Christmas Tree and Holiday Light Fires" by John R. Hall,
Jr., November 2013.
Also see: Fact
sheet on Christmas trees and holiday lights (PDF, 51 KB)
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THE FIRE HAZARDS OF CHRISTMAS
TREES, LIGHTS, CORDS AND CANDLES
What's a
holiday party or even the traditional Christmas morning scene itself without a
beautifully decorated tree? If your household, as those of more than 33 million
other American homes, includes a natural tree in its festivities, take to heart
the sales person's suggestion—"Keep the tree watered." Click
READ MORE below for the two (2) tree fire videos.
That's
good advice and not just to create a fragrant indoor winter wonderland
atmosphere. Christmas trees account for 250 fires annually, resulting in 14
deaths, 26 injuries and more than $18.3 million in property damage. Typically
shorts in electrical lights or open flames from candles, lighters or matches
start tree fires. Well-watered trees are
not a problem. Dry and neglected trees can be.
The
video clip above from the Building and Fire
Research Laboratory of the National Institute of Standards and Technology
illustrates what happens when fire touches a dry tree. Within three seconds of ignition, the dry
Scotch pine is completely ablaze. At
five seconds, the fire extends up the tree and black smoke with searing gases
streaks across the ceiling. Fresh air
near the floor feeds the fire. The sofa, coffee table and the carpet ignite
prior to any flame contact. Within 40
seconds "flashover" occurs - that's when an entire room erupts into
flames, oxygen is depleted and dense, deadly toxic smoke engulfs the scene.
Wet
trees tell a different story. For
comparative purposes, the NIST fire safety engineers selected a green Scotch
pine, had it cut in their presence, had an additional two inches cut from the
trunk's bottom, and placed the tree in a stand with at least a 7.6 liter water
capacity. The researchers maintained the
Scotch pine's water on a daily basis. A
single match could not ignite the tree. A
second attempt in which an electric current ignited an entire matchbook failed
to fire the tree. Finally they applied
an open flame to the tree using a propane torch. The branches ignited briefly,
but self-extinguished when the researchers removed the torch from the branches.
As we the fire safety engineers say:
REMEMBER, A WET TREE IS A SAFE TREE!
