It’s time to deck the halls, but as beautiful as they look, holiday decorations can also be dangerous.
While Christmas lights are pretty and festive, they also are harmful if not used correctly. Firefighters say certain outdoor and indoor decorations can be a fire hazard.
It’s the third year the Law family have decorated their house for the holidays and each year the Christmas display gets bigger and bigger.
“I can not stop it, I keep buying more and more,” said Hyeok Law.
Christmas lights put everyone in the holiday spirit. “I like when kids pass by and they’re kind of excited, happy,” Law said.
If they’re not used properly they can ruin the holiday cheer. Firefighters say faulty Christmas lights can cause a tree to ignite.
“A lot of people they use stuff from previous years and you want to make sure when you take them out of the box, that they don’t have any frays,” explained Capt. Frank Mckenzie, with Huntsville Fire & Rescue.
If you’re putting lights outside, you want to make sure they are for outdoor use. Make sure your extension cords are in good condition and the connections are not on the ground.
“Off the ground so [snow’s] not in there to cause an electrical hazard, if it rains you want to keep it off the ground also, you can place a brick up underneath it,” Mckenzie said.
Firefighters say Christmas tree fires are not common, but when they happen they are deadly. If you have a real Christmas tree, experts recommend keeping it watered at all times.
“A tree that is dry, it’s really easy to catch on fire, so you want to make sure if you have a live tree to keep that tree hydrated,” he added.
Firefighters say you also want to make sure your Christmas lights are recognized by a laboratory.
