Health and Safety for Workers, Students, and Families

Christmas tree fire safety: Preventing holiday hazards

Nothing brightens the Christmas holidays more than a beautifully decked-out tree. But without proper precautions, Christmas trees and lights can pose real fire hazards to homes, offices, and schools. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, there are hundreds of Christmas tree fires every year, resulting in deaths, injuries, and millions of dollars in property damage. Shorts in electrical lights or flames from candles, lighters, or matches start most tree fires.

Home fires caused by Christmas trees are relatively rare compared to home fires started in other ways, says the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), but they are more often deadly. For every nine home fires that begin with a Christmas tree, says the NFPA, one person dies—compared to one death in every 75 home fires unrelated to Christmas trees.

Here are a few fire safety tips to ensure a merry, healthy, and safe Christmas for your family, friends, co-workers, schoolmates.

Get a fresh tree

When choosing a tree, make sure it’s not dry. Bounce the tree trunk on the ground; a fresh tree will keep its needles. Test a tree’s freshness by bending a few needles, says the Live Safe Foundation. The needles should bend easily and not snap in half. Fresh needles are also not easily pulled from the branch. The trunk of a fresh tree is sticky to the touch from resin. Ask the tree seller to cut off a couple of inches from the bottom the trunk for optimal water uptake.

Keep the tree hydrated

Secure the tree in a stable base with a water capacity of at least 1 gallon. Replenish the water every day. Well-watered trees are not a fire hazard, says the U.S. Fire Administration. Dry, neglected trees, though, can be fire starters. A short fire-hazard video from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory of the National Institute of Standards and Technology shows how quickly fire spreads when a dry tree is ignited.

Place the tree in a safe location

Keep the tree at least 3 feet away from heat vents, space heaters, radiators, baseboard heating, and fireplaces. Avoid room corners—fires that start in corners get hot quickly and spread faster than those near a flat wall. Also, the tree should never block exits from the room.

Avoid electrical mishaps

Nearly half of Christmas tree fires are caused by electrical malfunction, says the NFPA. Don't overload outlets. Connect no more than three strands of lights to a single extension cord. Don't run extension cords under rugs, across doorways, or near heaters. If possible, use a surge protector. Use only UL-listed lights designed for indoor use; inspect each strand for frays or exposed wiring. Trying to repair damaged strings isn't worth the risk—just retire or recycle them. Keep lights and cords away from the water in the tree stand, and from flammable materials like curtains. Unplug lights before leaving the house or going to bed.

A few more safety tips

• Never use decorate your tree with candles.
• Try your best to keep small children and pets away from the tree. Consider putting up a fence or child gate.
• Test the tree needles regularly. As long as they remain flexible when bent, the tree is likely safe.
• Don't burn dry trees, tree parts, or wrapping paper in your fireplace. They might suddenly ignite, causing a flash fire that your fireplace can't contain.

Photo credit: wolfsavard

Halloween health and safety tips: Happy trick-or-treating!

 

Halloween can be a fun holiday for kid and grownups alike, but trick-or-treating might turn a little too spooky unless you take some common-sense precautions for optimal holiday health and safety.

Are those costumes safe?

• Unmask! Especially with younger kids, masks can obstruct vision. Use kid-safe makeup instead, but first test it on a small area and watch for irritation. Wash it off before bedtime.
• Use safe props. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises that “swords, knives, and similar costume accessories should be short, soft, and flexible.”
• The right fit? Make sure children’s costumes allow enough room for warm clothing underneath. But dresses, pants, and capes should not be so long that they cause tripping. Discourage too-big shoes and high heels.
• Brighten up. Opt for brightly colored costumes and apply reflective tape to costumes and bags for visibility at night.
• Fire hazards. Choose costumes made from flame-retardant fabrics. Do not go near lit candles, luminaries, lighters, or open flames especially if you’re wearing a loose-fitting costume.

Out and about: Safety for trick-or-treaters

• Safety in numbers. Don’t trick-or-treat alone; go in groups. Kids younger than 12 should be accompanied by an adult. “Make sure someone in the group carries a flashlight with fresh batteries,” says the Mayo Clinic.
• Stranger danger. Stick to familiar neighborhoods. Ask older children to carry cell phones. Instruct kids to approach only brightly lit homes and to never go inside a home.
• Be street wise. Walk only on sidewalks or at the far edge of well-lit roads, facing traffic. Use crosswalks, and look both ways before crossing. At intersections, wait for the “walk” signal. Don’t take shortcuts through backyards, alleys, or parks.
• Safe to eat? Ask kids not to snack on treats before they get home. Inspect treats for tampering and choking hazards. Eat only factory-wrapped treats. If an item is not sealed, the packaging is torn, or it looks “iffy,” throw it away. Avoid homemade treats. For very young kids, discard gum, peanuts, small hard candies, and other items that might be choking hazards.
• Have a party instead. The Mayo Clinic advises parents to consider having a trick-or-treat party with neighbors instead of going door-to-door. Decorate garages, and plan games with prizes. Not only is this a safer and healthier activity, but it also allows kids to interact with each other.

Keeping your house safe for trick-or-treaters

• Welcome. Switch on porch and exterior lights for good visibility. Clear away any obstacles—such as toys, bicycles, hoses, lawn decorations—that could be tripping hazards. Remove soggy leaves, puddles, ice, and snow from walking areas.
• Down, Fido! Keep your pets away from children on your property.
• Healthier giveaways. Instead of handing out candy, consider small packs of raisins, trail mix, or pretzels. Or how about fun non-edibles for bigger kids like colorful pencils, cute erasers, rubber spiders, or glow sticks? Green Halloween has a lot of ideas for treats to give out instead of candy.
• Driver alert. If you need to drive, watch out for kids darting between parked cars. Take it slow, especially when entering or leaving driveways and alleys.

photo credit: woolennium