Posted by: John_Hamilton on 12/14/2013 12:40 PM
Updated by: John_Hamilton on 12/14/2013 12:49 PM
Expires: 01/01/2018 12:00 AM
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Red Cross Issues Safety Tips to Prevent Holiday Home Fires
Sacramento, CA...The American Red Cross urges residents to take extra precautions with cooking and decorating around the holidays. “Cooking is the leading cause of home fires, and as people are cooking, entertaining, and stringing lights this holiday season, we’re urging that they take safety measures to ensure that their homes and loved ones are safe from the threat of fire,” said Kathleen Weis, Chief Executive Officer for the Red Cross Capital Region...
Christmas Day, Christmas Eve and Thanksgiving are the top three days for cooking fires, according to the National Fire Prevention Association. Nationally, the Red Cross responds to a disaster on average every eight minutes, and the vast majority of them are home fires.
The Red Cross has some simple steps everyone can follow to prevent home fires around the holidays:
Holiday Entertaining
Test your smoke alarms.
Check food regularly while cooking and remain in the home while cooking. Use a timer as a reminder that the stove or oven is on.
Enforce a “kid-free zone” in the cooking area and make children stay at least three feet away from the stove.
Keep anything that can catch fire away from the stove, oven or any appliance in the kitchen that generates heat.
Clean cooking surfaces on a regular basis to prevent grease buildup.
Purchase a fire extinguisher to keep in the kitchen. Contact the local fire department to receive training on the proper use of extinguishers.
Holiday Decorating
Choose decorations that are flame resistant or flame retardant.
Keep children, pets and decorations away from lit candles.
Keep matches and lighters up high in a locked cabinet.
Replace any string of lights with worn or broken cords or loose bulb connections. Connect no more than three strands of mini light sets and a maximum of 50 bulbs for screw-in bulbs. Read manufacturer’s instructions for the number of LED strands to connect. Some strings of lights are only for indoor or outdoor use, but not both.
Use clips, not nails, to hang lights so the cords do not get damaged.
Keep decorations away from windows and doors.
People should also download the free American Red Cross First Aid app, which provides instant access to information on handling the most common first aid emergencies. The apps can be downloaded from the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store for Android by searching for American Red Cross or by going to redcross.org/mobileapps.
People can test their knowledge on how to prevent home fires by taking the Fire Safety Quiz, and can learn more about fire prevention by visiting redcross.org.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation's blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. The Capital Region serves a twenty-four county territory including Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne, Yolo, and Yuba counties. For more information, visit www.redcross.org/capitalregion or follow us on Twitter @RedCrossCRC.
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