Staying fire safe during the holidays

ISHPEMING — With the holidays just a few days away, it’s as important as ever to think about fire safety. Here are a few tips to keep you and your family safe over the holidays.

Keeping your Christmas tree well watered and at least three feet away from any heat source is important for preventing fire.
Also, don’t place your trees or decorations in an area that could obstruct an exit.

“We see that from time to time,” said City of Ishpeming Fire Chief Ed Anderson. “Not only trees, but other things; you put your Christmas tree up and you might move your couch or chair in front of an entrance door. That’s really a bad idea.”

Smoke detectors are a key component of fire safety. You should avoid the temptation to borrow batteries from your smoke detector.

“Smoke alarms during the holiday season are very important to make sure they’re operational,” Anderson added. “Don’t remove the batteries from your smoke alarms to power your kids toys that they may have gotten for Christmas. It’s one of those things that you might think, ‘Hey, I’ll just take the batteries out of this smoke alarm and I’ll put it in tomorrow,’ but tomorrow seems like it never comes.”

Firefighters say to make sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions as to how many Christmas lights you can string together safely. You should limit the use of extension cords if you can and don’t run them under carpets.

Click here to find more information on Christmas tree safety from the National Fire Protection Association, or here for more holiday safety tips from the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.