With the hustle and bustle of the holiday season upon us, one thing to keep in mind while entertaining your friends and family is making sure you do not require a visit from the fire department.

Christmas normally includes lights, candles, and lots of cooking. Combine those with a tree, gift-wrapped presents, and a busy house and you have the potential for an unwanted holiday fire.

Lacombe Fire Chief Ed Vandelden says an improperly taken care of Christmas tree can be a bonfire waiting to happen.

“On trees, my recommendation would be to move to LED lighting. They generally create a lot less heat, and so if the lights were to become disengaged from the tree branch and land on, well, there’s often a lot of paper underneath trees right, something that’s easily ignitable… so if you could move to LED lights that would be a good thing.”

Vandelden says the majority of holiday fires in Lacombe occur where most home fires start: the kitchen.

“Most of them are a result of distraction, and this time of year with company over, maybe later nights, whatever, it’s certainly easy to imagine not quite paying attention they need to on cooking, or dozing off for a few minutes to catch up on some sleep, and the results can be pretty catastrophic.”

Vandelden also reminds you to avoid overloading extension cords and make sure you have working carbon monoxide and smoke detectors.

Some other quick checks you can do before your guests arrive include:

  • Making sure any space heaters are at least one metre away from curtains, furniture and decorations, and make sure to turn them off when not in use.
  • Safely put out cigarettes and other smoking materials in a closed ashtray.
  • Test and dispose of any frayed cords or light bulbs on decorative lights.

Click here for some more tips from the government of Alberta, and the National Fire Protection Association.