WASHINGTON, D.C.- AS THE HOLIDAY SEASON APPROACHES, THE U.S. CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION (CPSC) IS URGING CONSUMERS TO MAKE SAFETY A FACTOR IN HOLIDAY DECORATING. WHETHER IT IS CAREFUL CANDLE PLACEMENT OR CHECKING THE WARNING LABEL ON THE HOLIDAY LIGHTS, SIMPLE SAFETY STEPS CAN GO A LONG WAY IN PREVENTING FIRES AND INJURIES THIS YEAR.
ANNUALLY, DURING THE TWO MONTHS SURROUNDING THE HOLIDAY SEASON, MORE THAN 14,000 PEOPLE ARE TREATED IN HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOMS DUE TO INJURIES RELATED TO HOLIDAY DECORATING. IN ADDITION, CHRISTMAS TREES ARE INVOLVED IN HUNDREDS OF FIRES RESULTING IN AN AVERAGE OF 15 DEATHS AND $13 MILLION DOLLARS IN PROPERTY DAMAGE ANNUALLY. CANDLE-RELATED FIRES LEAD THE LIST OF HAZARDS AVERAGING MORE THAN 12,000 A YEAR, RESULTING IN 150 DEATHS AND $393 MILLION IN PROPERTY DAMAGE.
“HOLIDAY DECORATING-RELATED FIRES AND INJURIES MOST OFTEN INVOLVE DEFECTIVE HOLIDAY LIGHTS, UNATTENDED CANDLES AND DRIED-OUT CHRISTMAS TREES,” SAID CPSC CHAIRMAN INEZ TENENBAUM. “WE ARE PROVIDING THIS LIST OF 10 SIMPLE SAFETY STEPS TO HELP KEEP YOUR HOLIDAY HOME SAFE.”
USE THE FOLLOWING TEN SAFETY TIPS WHEN DECORATING THIS YEAR:
TREES AND DECORATIONS WHEN PURCHASING AN ARTIFICIAL TREE, DO LOOK FOR THE LABEL “FIRE RESISTANT.” ALTHOUGH THIS LABEL DOES NOT MEAN THE TREE WON’T CATCH FIRE, IT DOES INDICATE THE TREE IS MORE RESISTANT TO CATCHING FIRE. WHEN PURCHASING A LIVE TREE, DO CHECK FOR FRESHNESS. A FRESH TREE IS GREEN, NEEDLES ARE HARD TO PULL FROM BRANCHES AND DO NOT BREAK WHEN BENT BETWEEN YOUR FINGERS. THE BOTTOM OF A FRESH TREE IS STICKY WITH RESIN, AND WHEN TAPPED ON THE GROUND, THE TREE SHOULD NOT LOSE MANY NEEDLES. WHEN SETTING UP A TREE AT HOME, DO PLACE IT AWAY FROM HEAT SOURCES SUCH AS FIREPLACES, VENTS, AND RADIATORS. BECAUSE HEATED ROOMS DRY OUT LIVE TREES RAPIDLY, BE SURE TO MONITOR WATER LEVELS AND KEEP THE STAND FILLED WITH WATER. PLACE THE TREE OUT OF THE WAY OF TRAFFIC, AND DO NOT BLOCK DOORWAYS. IN HOMES WITH SMALL CHILDREN, DO TAKE SPECIAL CARE TO AVOID SHARP, WEIGHTED OR BREAKABLE DECORAT
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