The fire started small. Flickering yellow and orange flames emerged at the back of the Christmas tree. In less the 60 seconds, the tree fueled a raging blaze that engulfed the living room and sent thick black smoke billowing into the sky.
When it was extinguished by firefighters, just a charred wreck remained.
As New Jersey residents head to farms and garden centers this month in search of the perfect Christmas tree, fire safety officials staged a live burn Wednesday at the Monmouth County Fire Academy in Freehold as a reminder of the dangers decorated evergreens can pose without proper care.
Among the biggest concerns is a dried out tree turning into a tinderbox.
“Once they do dry out, if they catch on fire, they are going to go. They are going to go very quickly,” said Richard Mikutsky, state fire marshal and director of the New Jersey Division of Fire Safety said at the demonstration, which also provided a side-by-side comparison to highlight the effectiveness of sprinklers in quickly suppressing fires.
The Monmouth County Fire Academy hosted a Christmas tree burning demonstration to show the importance of fire safety.Deion Johnson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Members of the N.J. The Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board, as well as the state Fire Marshal, Richard Mikutsky, discussed and provided a presentation of side-by-side burning trailers filled with two rooms. Both rooms favored each other in areas of furniture and holiday decorations to show how effective fire sprinklers are in a home, on Wednesday.
“Between 2016 and 2018, there were 1,205 candle or Christmas tree fires,” New Jersey State Fire Safety Commission member John Wisniewski said. “Those were tragedies that did not need to happen. With a couple of basic safety tips, we will avoid that type of tragedy happening again.”
The United States averaged 160 Christmas tree fires a year between 2015 and 2019, according to the National Fire Protection Association. Those fires, on average, killed two people, injured 12 and cost $10 million in property damage a year. During the same span, the NFPA reported 7,400 home fires per year that were started by candles, with December and January as the peak months.
Fire officials offered these 11 Christmas tree safety tips:
- Choose a tree with fresh, green needles that do not fall off when touched.
- Keep the tree hydrated and add water daily.
- Keep the tree, and decorations, at least three feet away from any heat source, like fireplaces, radiators, candles, heat vents or lights.
- Use lights appropriately: some are only for indoor or outdoor use, and check that they have been laboratory tested (such as UL).
- Replace any string of lights with worn or broken cords or loose bulbs, and check manufacturer’s guidelines for the number of strands to connect.
- Choose flame retardant decorations.
- Do not overload electrical outlets. Check manufacturer recommendations for stringing lights together.
- Never leave Christmas tree lights on if the tree is unattended.
- Avoid using lit candles on trees and near curtains and other flammable materials, or in the presence of small children (opt for safer battery-operated candles).
- Make sure the tree and other decorations are not blocking an exit.
- When you dismantle the tree, discard it immediately and properly. Do not leave it in a garage, on a porch or at the side of the house.
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Deion Johnson may be reached at djohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DeionRJohhnson
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WATCH: Christmas tree fuels blaze in holiday fire demo. Follow these 11 tips to stay safe. - nj.com
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