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Halloween Fire Risks at Home – Mitigating Fire Damage This October

Published by SEO on September 2, 2021 in category: Fire Safety Tips

Fire Damage on Halloween Halloween is an exciting holiday for people of all ages. The possibilities of making it fun are endless. But with all the enjoyment also comes responsibility. Halloween can be as dangerous as it is exciting, and the possibilities of things set on fire are endless too. However, the following six tips will help you reduce fire risk on Halloween this year without cutting down on any fun. Read along:

Swap Regular Candles for a Safer Option

Candles are pretty handy in cases of emergencies and or for romantic dinners. But they’re not suitable to be used as décor, especially on a night when adults are drunk and kids are running around. However, one doesn’t have to compromise on décor to ensure safety.

Glow sticks make an excellent replacement for candles to be used in jack o lanterns. They can improve regular candles because they don’t burn the insides of those exquisitely carved pumpkins and keep them intact throughout the Halloween season.

For other decorations, battery-operated candles are a good replacement for regular ones. They can easily be switched off when not needed, are easier to maintain than regular candles, and are almost non-hazardous when compared to regular candles.

While making trick-or-treat baskets for kids, keep flashlights instead of candles. Even cheap flashlights these days have several strength options for the light. Children can use the flashlights on a dim setting while trick-or-treating, but can turn the setting to brightest if scared or wanting to be careful on dark streets and unknown neighborhoods.

Choose Fitted Costumes

Dressing up in costumes is an important part of Halloween, but it shouldn’t come with the risk of starting a fire. Avoid long and flowy garments and costumes to minimize the possibility of starting a fire. Linen and cotton are the most flammable fabrics and should be avoided at all costs.

To be even safer, prepare costumes with materials that have a lower risk of catching fire. Wool is an excellent fabric for the purpose. It’s warm and hence weather-appropriate for the chilly October night too. This may sound restricting, but the only limit to creating Halloween costumes is one’s imagination or a Google search! Don’t forget to look for fire-resistant labels while shopping for Halloween costumes, especially for kids or pets.

Divide the Décor, Literally

Not all, but some décor items can be flammable. If you’re using natural décor elements such as twigs and branches or dried leaves and flowers, then it’s best to use them as décor in rooms that don’t have a fire source. For rooms that contain a fire source, such as the kitchen or a lounge area with a fireplace, use fire-safe décor pieces.

However, all décor items should be kept away from any possible fire source. These include light bulbs, heaters, electronics, fireplaces, stove, microwave, dishwasher, geysers, washing machine, and dryer, etc.

Keep Entry and Exit Points Clear

Keep décor at a minimum at entry and exit points of the home. Use minimal wall décor, if any, at entrances, hallways, windows, and fire escapes. Carved pumpkins may look beautiful at doorsteps, but theycan be unsafe if they block pathways. Fire risk on Halloween is always high; and keeping entry and exits points empty ensures a clear path to escape in case a fire starts.

Less than half the fun on Halloween comes from the ambiance anyway. You can always make up for décor by planning fun activities. Nobody remembers the décor until the next Halloween either, but everyone is going to remember a fire on Halloween night.

Brief Children on Safety

Children will be as safe as they’re told to be. To make sure you can enjoy Halloween too without having to worry about children’s safety, brief them on important safety aspects beforehand. If you plan to send your children trick or treating in the neighborhood, make sure they understand to be aware of their surroundings. Educate children about the possibility of fire and what to do if they witness fire damage at home or somebody else’s home.

Use More Extensions

The pretty lights you hang around your home’s interior and exterior can be a fire hazard too, along with any other decoration that needs to be plugged in. The risk becomes incredibly high if you plug multiple lights into a single extension.

Make sure you divide the energy load to prevent short circuits. Even a minor issue can exacerbate and cause a fire that spreads uncontrollably.

Prepare Ahead

To further reduce the fire risk and fire damage at home, check all the smoke alarms at home before Halloween and make sure to get them repaired if needed. There’s no such thing as too much caution. Fire damage can be draining on both one’s mental and physical health and their pocket.

A safe Halloween night is a lot more fun than an overly done Halloween night ending in a disaster. Mitigate the fire risk on Halloween by following the above tips. If you want to be extra careful, keep contact with a fire damage restoration service handy. 911 Restoration of Tampa, Florida provides great service for all kinds of restorations, including fire and smoke damage restoration, in Tampa and nearby areas.

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