Fire Officials Give Safety Tips Ahead of Halloween

HYANNIS – With Halloween approaching, the National Fire Protection Association is offering some fire safety tips for the public.

The NFPA reports from 2014 to 2019, there was an annual average of 770 house fires that started because of decorations.

Forty-four percent of those fires happened because of decorations that were too close to a heat source like candles or other hot items.

For Halloween safety tips, the group is advising people to keep decorations like cornstalks and dried flowers away from open flames and light bulbs.

For lighting up jack-o-lanterns, officials say using glow sticks or electric candles is a safer choice than real candles. Any real candles should also be kept away from trick-or-treaters.

The NFPA recommends avoiding long fabrics as part of costumes that could potentially catch fire easily.

Other safety tips include making sure exits are free of decorations and that smoke alarms are functional.

“As more people plan to celebrate the holiday this year, whether it be trick-or-treating or costume parties, we want everyone to know where potential fire risks exist so they can take the steps needed to minimize them,” NFPA spokesperson Lorraine Carli said.

By Brian Engles, CapeCod.com NewsCenter

About Brian Engles

Brian Engles is a longtime local of the Cape. He studied Film & TV at Boston University and in addition to his role at Cape Cod Broadcasting Media, he also works as a music instructor and records original songs.



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