Risk of Home Fires Significantly Higher During the Holidays

Over the years, I can’t tell you how many devastated families I’ve met who've lost their home due to a fire.  They look to DelSuites as a temporary home while their house is being restored, or in some cases, rebuilt.

Sadly, the incidence and severity of fires is significantly higher during the winter holiday season.  Use of decorations, candles, fireplaces and Christmas trees contributes to this increase.

It amazes me how often this occurs and, of course, has caused me to become overly cautious.  I unplug our Christmas lights when we’re not home or when we’re sleeping, I’ve switched from wax candles to battery operated tea lights and even invested in a fire proof safe where we keep those hard to replace documents. 

You might be thinking, “This would never happen to me.”  A quick bit of research left me with some startling statistics.  Ontario averages 6,000 preventable home fires annually!

From my personal experience, I wanted to share these simple tips this holiday season to keep your home and loved ones safe:

1)  Test your Smoke and Carbon Monoxide detectors - today!
2)  Never burn wrapping paper in your fireplace. It can cause a chimney fire.
3)  Use flameless candles.
4)  If you have an artificial tree, be sure it is fire retardant.  If you have a real tree, keep it 3 ft. away from any heat source and water it daily.
5)  Always turn off Christmas tree lights before leaving home or going to bed.

Have a safe holiday and a happy New Year!