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Page A—1 6 - Shelton-Mason County Journal Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020
How to decorate while ,stayingfire-safe
By Kirk Boxleitner
kbox/eitner@masoncounty. com
The first responders at
Central Mason Fire & EMS
and the North Mason Region-
al Fire Authority (NMRFA)
want county residents to cel-
ebrate the holidays safely,
starting with their decora-
tions.
“Festive lights and can-,
dles can bring a lot of cheer,
but more than half of home
decoration fires in Decem-
ber are started by candles,”
NMRFA Emergency Preven—
tion Specialist Lacey New—
man said. “It’s imperative
to keep candles at least 12
inches away from anything
flammable.”
Home decorators should
follow .manufacturers’ in-
structions when stringing
electriéf‘ lights I around your
home, Newman added.
“And check the individual
lights themselves,” said Cen-
tral Mason Fire Chief Mike
Patti, who’s also fire marshal
for Shelton. “It’s not a bad
idea to buy new lights, be—
cause stuffing your old lights
back in a box can damage
them. You also shouldn’t con-
nect more than two strings of
light together, to avoid over-
loading the circuit.”
Newman agreed that
electric light strands should
be inspected before they’re
hung each year, and any
light strands with frayed
or pinched wires should be
thrown away, just as Patti
warned against leaving in
any broken bulbs or ignoring
any open light sockets on a
string.
“And whether you’re leav-
ing your home or going to
sleep for the evening, don’t
forget to turn off and unplug
your lights,” Newman said.
‘ Although surge suppres-
sor extension cords tend to
include multiple outlets,
Patti urged exercising simi-
lar caution, comparing outlet
capacity to a pickup truck’s
flatbed space.
“Just because you might
have six open outlets on an
extension cord doesn’t mean
you want plugs in all six out—
lets,” Patti said. “Even if you
have a big bed on your pick—
up, you don’t want to fill it all
the way with gravel.” V
While Christmas tree fires
are less common than candle
fires, they remain a threat.
“Due to the large amount of
fuel that a Christmas tree
provides, these fires tend to
grow and spread rapidly in a
home,” Newman said. “Keep
your tree at least 3 feet away
from heat sources'such as
fireplaces, space heaters,
candles and heat vents.”
Both Newman and Patti
stressed the importance of
keeping Christmas trees
properly watered, by plac-
ing the base of its cut trunk
in a reservoir of water that’s
replenished at least every
day, and dispensing with the
treeas soon as possible af-
ter Christmas, or as soon as
it begins to lose its needles,
whichever comes first.
Newman underscored the
warning of a dried—out tree
by pointing out how quickly
a dry tree can catch fire.
Newman expanded her
own warning by noting how
often holiday home decora-
tors place their stockings
and other flammable holiday
décor too close to their fire-
places or wood stoves, reit-
erating that ’all flammable
materials should be at least
3 feet away from any heat
source, including candles.
“Battery-operated flame-
less candles can look, smell
and feel like real candles,
without the serious fire
threat that an open flame
presents,” Newman said. “If
at all possible, switch to bat-
tery-operated candles, but if
you do use lit candles, make
‘ sure they are in stable can-
dle-holders, where they can’t
be knocked down easily.”
Both Newman and Patti
offered the same fire safety
advice for Christmas dinners
as they had for Thanksgiv—
mg:
I Ensure your burners
and oven are clean before
you start cooking because the
residue of food and grease on
the stovetop or in the oven
increases the risk of kitchen
fires.
I If you have a pan fire,
put it out quickly by sliding
a lid over the pan, turning
the burner off and letting the
pan cool. If you have baking
soda nearby, pour baking
soda into the pan, then place
. the lid back on top of the pan.
I If a fire starts in the
oven, turn the ovenoff and
SHEL'I‘ON~MASON COUNTY
C H. A M, B E R F
COMMERCE
HOLIDAY LIGHT COMPETITION
'KEEPING SPIRITS BRIGHT'
W’herc to “find the magic:
71 E Agate D17
[SA 352?. l3". Agate Rd
4.1.00 12‘. Agate Rd.
2.661 til-I AI‘L‘LuliJ Rd
50 SE Arcadia. Rd
1 011 B :1. y v icw Ave
keep the door closed. After
an oven fire, have your oven
professionally serviced be-
fore using again.
When it comes to deep-fry-
ing a’turkey for the occasion,
Patti’s. advice was simple:
“Don’t,” he said.
Newman said turkey fry-
ers can easily tip over. If
you insist on deep-frying
your turkey, she urged that
you only do so on a sturdy,
level surface, located a safe
distance from anything that
might be flammable, with
a minimum 3-foot “kid and
pet—free zone” around the
fryer to protect against burn
injuries.
Newman added that an
overfilled cooking pot will
likewise cause oil to spill
when the turkey is placed in-
side, inviting another major
burn and fire risk. j _-
“Try placing the.:tiirkey..in
the pot with water first, so
you know exactly how much
oil will be needed before you
start heating things. up to
cook,” Newman said. “It’s
important that your turkey
is completely thawed before
you fry it, because a partially
frozen turkey will cause hot
oil to splatter, and increase
your risk of unintentionally
setting a fire.”
Check the temperature
frequently with a cooking
thermometer so the oil won’t
overheat. .
1,118 Ellinor Ave
52 2. N Th i rd 5.} t
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51.1 N La kc View Dr
201. SE Whltt'cucr Rd
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