Avoid these holiday decorating hazards

Millions of families are decorating their homes with Christmas trees and holiday lights.

But those decorations can quickly lead to a disaster.

A demonstration shows the difference between a Christmas tree that has been watered regularly and a dry one.

When a flame is lit underneath the trees the watered tree never catches fire, but flames spread through the dry tree quickly and move to the ceiling.

In just seconds the room is swallowed by flames.

“In an instant, you turn from a happy setting to your entire house is on fire,” Alexander Hoehn-Saric, chair of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.

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Hoehn-Saric said candles are also a potential hazard.

Candles can cause thousands of fires yearly, with December being the peak month.

Faulty Christmas lights are also a fire hazard.

Experts say to avoid cracked bulbs, check lights for frayed wires, and never overload electrical outlets.

“We also see a lot of trips to the emergency room,” Hoehn-Saric said.

During the holiday season, the CPSC said there are about 160 Christmas decoration-related injuries each day, more than 40 percent of those incidents involve falls.

In 2021, Ken Wilson was putting up outdoor Christmas lights when he fell 11 feet onto concrete and fractured six ribs.

Taking a few precautions, like keeping a Christmas tree watered, can help make sure your holiday doesn’t end in disaster.

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