Put Safety at the Top of Your List When Decorating this Holiday Season!

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As the nation gears up to decorate their homes for the holiday season, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reminds consumers of decorating dangers and provides tips for a safe holiday. CPSC demonstrated some of the hazards, including Christmas tree and candle fires at its laboratory in Rockville, Md. See CPSC's broadcast quality video.  

"Safety should be part of all your decorating efforts," said CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle. "Make sure your live Christmas tree has plenty of water, keep lit candles away from flammable items, and use caution when standing on a ladder or a chair to hang decorations."

Holiday decorating-related injuries:

CPSC estimates the following holiday decoration-related emergency room-treated injuries nationwide during last year's holiday season.

• 14,700 holiday decorating related ER-treated injuries.  That's an average of about 240 injuries per day during the holiday season of November and December!
• The most frequent holiday decorating incidents involved falls (41%), lacerations (10%) and back strains (5%).
• 3 deaths involving ladder falls.

Follow these CPSC safety tips to keep your family safe:

Trees and Decorations

1. Buying a live tree? Check for freshness. A fresh tree is green, its needles are hard to pull from branches, and its needles 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.
2. Setting up a tree at home? Place it away from heat sources, such as fireplaces, vents, and radiators. Heated rooms rapidly dry out live trees, be sure to monitor water levels daily and keep the tree stand filled with water. Place the tree out of the way of foot traffic and do not block doorways with the tree.
3. Buying an artificial tree? Look for the label: "Fire Resistant." Although this label does not mean that the tree will not catch fire, the tree is more resistant to catching fire.
4. Decorating a tree in homes with small children? Avoid sharp or breakable decorations. Keep trimmings with small removable parts out of the reach of small children who could swallow or inhale small pieces. Avoid trimmings that resemble candy or food that may tempt a child to try to eat them.

Candles

1. Keep burning candles within sight. Extinguish all candles before leaving the room.
2. Keep candles on a stable, heat-resistant surface where children and pets cannot reach them or knock them over. Place lit candles away from items that can catch fire such as trees, decorations, curtains and furniture.

Lights

1. Only use lights tested for safety by a nationally recognized testing laboratory. Lights for both indoor and outdoor usage must meet strict standards that testing laboratories are able to verify.
2. Check each set of lights, new or old, for broken or cracked sockets, frayed or bare wires, or loose connections. Throw out damaged sets and do not use electric lights on a metallic tree.
3. Check each extension cord to make sure it is rated for the intended use and is in good condition. Do not use cords with cuts or signs of fraying.
4. Check outdoor lights for labels showing the lights have been certified for outdoor use and only plug them into a ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI)-protected receptacle or a portable GFCI.

Fireplaces

1. Use care with "fire salts," which produce colored flames when thrown onto wood fires. Fire salts contain heavy metals that can cause intense gastrointestinal irritation and vomiting if swallowed. Keep them away from children.
2. Do not burn wrapping paper in the fireplace. A flash fire may result because wrappings can ignite suddenly and burn intensely.

Smoke alarms

1. CPSC recommends having working smoke alarms on every floor of the home and in every bedroom. The early warning provided by smoke alarms saves lives.
2. Test your smoke alarms every month to make sure they are working properly.
3. Change batteries in smoke alarms every year.

You can also find more fire safety tips and information in our fire safety information center.

About U.S. CPSC:
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction.  Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical or mechanical hazard. CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters and household chemicals – contributed to a decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 40 years.

Federal law bars any person from selling products subject to a publicly-announced voluntary recall by a manufacturer or a mandatory recall ordered by the Commission.

For more lifesaving information, follow us on Facebook, Instagram @USCPSC and Twitter @USCPSC or sign up to receive our e-mail alerts. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury go online to www.SaferProducts.gov or call CPSC's Hotline at 800-638-2772 or teletypewriter at 301-595-7054 for the hearing impaired.

CPSC Consumer Information Hotline
Contact us at this toll-free number if you have questions about a recall:
800-638-2772 (TTY 301-595-7054)
Times: 8 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. ET; Messages can be left anytime
Call to get product safety and other agency information and to report unsafe products.

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SOURCE U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Related Links

http://www.cpsc.gov