Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Blog
The tradition of a real Christmas tree may be something your family enjoys partaking in every year. Loading everybody up in the car and heading to the tree farm to select your perfect tree, chop it down, and bring it home to decorate might be what Christmas means to you. Fresh trees smell great and can be quite charming, but you may not realize that real trees can be very hazardous when they are dry. A dry tree combined with fireplaces, hot Christmas lights, and any other sources of heat can be a recipe for real disaster. In fact, the National Fire Protection Association has said that dry Christmas trees can quickly turn into a rapidly spreading fire that burns even faster than paper. If your version of Christmas involves a live tree, then you need to know how to prevent a tree fire from ruining your holiday.
How Do Dry Trees Lead to a Fire?
Take a look at this video published by the National Fire Protection Association to see just how hazardous an unwatered Christmas tree can really be.
What starts as a small flame quickly demolishes the tree in just a few seconds. At 30 seconds, the entire room is engulfed in a blaze. This is how Christmas tree fires happen every year and devastate families holiday traditions.
How to Prevent Christmas Tree Fires
Perhaps the most logical answer for this is to just water your live tree. Trees that are hydrated are much less likely to start a blaze.
Live Christmas trees must be watered daily. Many people do not realize that their live tree needs water every single day. Research indicates that 70% of people with live trees are unaware that their tree needs water daily. Only 45% of people with live trees actually water them daily, so there is a huge risk of fires happening in households all across Florida and the rest of the U.S.
While you want to make sure that your Christmas tree is watered daily, you also want to make sure that you are purchasing a hydrated tree before you get it home. You can do this by only buying a tree that has been freshly chopped. Trees that have been previously cut weeks ago have been losing water and because of their dehydrated state, it can be much more difficult to get them hydrated so that they do not pose risk of catching fire.
In addition to watering your tree, you can also follow these tips to prevent a fire:
- Make sure all lights do not have loose connections or any frayed cords
- Just use one extension cord for your tree lights so that nothing gets too tangled
- Turn the lights off on your tree every day/night before leaving or going to sleep
- DO NOT place candles near your tree
- Keep your tree AT LEAST THREE FEET from any heat source
- By observing the above tips, you can make sure your holiday goes smoothly.
Get Help from Our Florida Injury Lawyers at Whittel & Melton
Accidents will happen any time of the year, including Christmas time. While some accidents can be prevented, others arise from negligence. There can be numerous reasons why a Christmas fire erupts, from defective lights to a dry tree being sold. If you or a family member suffers an injury this holiday season due to another person’s negligence, then we are here to help you with your case. We urge you to call our Florida Injury Lawyers at Whittel & Melton today at 866-608-5529 or contact us online for a free consultation so that we can get started reviewing your case. We will be available 24/7 this holiday season if you or a loved one is harmed.
Happy Holidays!