We want to start out by wishing everyone a safe and happy upcoming holiday season.  With that being said let's get down to the reason for this newsletter.  Every year there are tragic fires involving Christmas trees.  In fact, since 2015, yearly there are around 160 serious Christmas tree fires, resulting in a minimum of 2 deaths, more than a dozen injures and around 10 million dollars in damage.  Even though this is down from over 800 in the 1980's there is still plenty to do, to reduce this even further, here are some tips.**

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1) Pick a live tree that is fresh and the needles do not pull or fall off easily**

 

2) When you bring your tree home, do a fresh cut on the bottom of the trunk, place it in its stand, and water it.**

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3) Water your Christmas tree EVERY day that you have it on display.**  (if you skimp on the tip, you may find that you might have a tree that ay become fully involved in fire within 17 seconds if it catches on fire)

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4) Before putting your lights on the tree, check you all the strings of the lights for damage, like fraying, chewed or cracked wires.**

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5) Replace broken or burned-out bulbs with bulbs of the same wattage.**

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6) Do not exceed the maximum number of lights strands that the manufacture recommends.**

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7) Touch test your extension cords (after your decorations are turned on for a while) to see if they are getting warm or are hot.  If they are, you have too many things plugged into them.  Unplug some decorations from them.**

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8) When you leave home or go to bed, don't forget to unplug the lights.**

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DO NOT FORGET TO CHECK YOUR SMOKE DETECTORS AND PRACTIVE E.D.I.T.H. (EXIT DRILLS IN THE HOME) MONTHLY.

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

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* Information obtained from NFPA

**Information obtained from Christmas Tree Fires: Statistics and Prevention Tips by Cavallo & Signorello Ins Agency