It’s Halloween now at the end of October will soon be here. It’s the time of year when ghosts, goblins, and witches will once again be in search of candy and other goodies. The phrase for this ghoulish holiday is “Trick or Treat” but the famous phrase could easily turn into “Tragedy.” Here are some tips to help make this a fire safe time for everyone.
Fire wise homeowners know it’s never wise to use candles in a jack-o-lantern. Whether carried by a trick-or-treater or just set on a window ledge, the candlelit pumpkin is a fire waiting for a chance to spread.
Candle fires represent a leading cause of U.S. home fires. From 2003-2007, an annual average of 15,260 home structure fires were started by candles, causing 166 fire deaths, 1,289 injures and $450 million in direct property damage. Overall, candles caused 4% of reported home fires, 6% of home fire deaths, 10% of the home fires, and 7% of the direct property damage in reported home fires. Halloween is one of the top five days for candle fires.
If you prefer the flickering, eerie light of a candle to the dull constancy of a plain light bulb here’s a simple suggestion to make candlelight in a jack-o-lantern very safe. Use a string of color Christmas lights. Fill the string with red & yellow lights that flash by themselves. Cut a small hole in the back of the pumpkin to accommodate the electric plug and drop in the lights. You’ve created a fire-safe pumpkin that’s a Halloween chill down the stoutest ghoul’s spine.
Now there is sure to be Halloween parties as well with the decorations to put all in the fun spirit. Dried flowers, cornstalks and crepe paper are highly flammable. Keep these decorations well away from open flames and heat sources, including light bulbs and heaters.
National Fire Protection Association statistics show us also that, from 2003-2007, decorations were the item first ignited in a estimated annual average of 1,240 reported structure fires, resulting in 7 civilian deaths, 53 civilian injuries and$20 million in direct property damage each year.
Everyone is urged to take some simple precautions and practices to keep this year’s Halloween celebrations festive and safe. Here are a few more fire safety & safety tips:
· When choosing a costume, stay away from billowing or long trailing fabric. If you are making your own costume, choose material that won't easily ignite if it comes into contact with heat or flame. If your child is wearing a mask, make sure the eye holes are large enough so they can see out.
· Provide children with flashlights to carry for lighting or glow sticks as part of their costume.
· It is safest to use a flashlight or battery-operated candles in a jack-o-lantern. If you use a real candle, use extreme caution. Make sure children are watched at all times when candles are lit. When lighting candles inside jack-o-lanterns, use long fireplace-style matches or a utility lighter. Be sure to place lit pumpkins well away from anything that can burn and far enough out of way trick-or-treaters, doorsteps, walkways and yards.
· If you choose to use candle decorations, make sure to keep them well attended at all times.
· Remember to keep exits clear of decorations, so nothing blocks escape routes.
· Tell children to stay away from open flames. Be sure they know how to stop, drop and roll if their clothing catches fire. (Have them practice stopping immediately, dropping to the ground, covering their face with hands, and rolling over and over to put the flames out.)
· Use flashlights as alternatives to candles or torch lights when decorating walkways and yards. They are much safer for trick-or-treaters, whose costumes may brush against the lighting.
· If your children are going to Halloween parties at others’ homes, have them look for ways out of the home and plan how they would get out in an emergency.
· Children should always go trick-or-treating with a responsible adult.
· Remind children to stay together as a group and walk from house to house.
· Review how to cross a street with your child. Look left, right and left again to be sure no cars are approaching before crossing the street.
· Make a rule that children will not eat any treat until it has been brought home and examined by a grown-up.
Halloween is meant to be fun. Don’t let tragedy spoil it. Be Fire Safe! Be Fire Wise! Learn Not To Burn!
(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)
