Awareness is Key to Prevention
Silver City -- The holiday season is here and Silver City Police and Fire officials are urging the public to be aware of potential hazards and to take extra precautions to insure a safe, healthy and happy holiday season.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, some 30% of house fires and nearly 40% of home fire deaths occur between December and February. Holiday dinners with friends and family are a cornerstone of holiday gatherings. Fire Chief Milo Lambert warns that most house fires start in the kitchen, and he urges homeowners to make sure they have a fire extinguisher rated for cooking fires on hand, and that they know how to use it.
"Nine out of 10 homeowners don't have fire extinguishers," Lambert warns, "and the first moments of an emergency isn't the time to learn how to use one." Silver City firefighters are available to come to residents' homes to train homeowners on the proper use of fire extinguishers, and Lambert is concerned because the demand for such trainings is down.
Frying that Thanksgiving turkey? Lambert warns cooks to make sure the bird has been properly prepped - completely thawed and dry - to prevent water from causing the oil to bubble up and over onto the flames below. "You can have 10-foot flames before you know it."
And though Lambert says he loves the holidays, he absolutely hates natural Christmas trees. "Think about it. You've got a tree that gets dried out, strung with electric lights, and gifts wrapped in paper underneath. Then there's the tinsel, the cat or the dog...everything is a problem. I used to love real Christmas trees until I started in the fire service, now I see that they are complete insanity."
An average tree will go up in smoke in approximately 17 seconds, says Lambert, and in 32 seconds the carpet is on fire. "Think about that and how long it takes to wake up and get everyone out of the house. People don't understand how quickly fire spreads. It used to be that you had 14 to 17 minutes before the house goes up in flames, but now it's as little as eight minutes, given the amount of synthetic materials in modern homes."
Home heating equipment, especially space heaters, are the second most common cause of house fires, and the primary source of carbon monoxide poisoning. Lambert urges homeowners, landlords and tenants to make sure they have carbon monoxide detectors mounted in each bedroom on the wall, head-high when lying in bed. Common signs of carbon monoxide poisoning are headaches, light headedness and drowsiness.
Furnaces and chimneys should also be cleaned and inspected each season before use, Lambert urges, to ensure that all seals, filters and exhaust systems are functioning properly.
Theft and burglaries are of greater concern to Silver City police officers during the holidays, and Chief of Police Freddie Portillo urges everyone to be more observant of their surroundings, to watch out for one another, and to report any suspicious activity to the police immediately.
FedEx and UPS deliveries increase dramatically over the holiday season, and police urge online shoppers to ask a neighbor to pick up holiday packages if you can't. Home and vehicle doors should always be locked, and valuables removed from sight. On cold winter mornings, Portillo also suggests locking one's vehicle if possible while it's warming up.
A special operations unit of marked and unmarked patrol cars will be targeting areas of town where burglaries and thefts are more common, said Portillo. "We will be highly visible and actively patrolling these areas to prevent holiday theft and burglaries." And don't let too much holiday cheer land you in jail for a DUI, he warns. Saturation patrols and DUI checkpoints will be in force throughout the holiday season.
Traveling for the holidays? Don't chat about plans on social media and let everyone know that your home will be vacant, Portillo added. "Be careful who you tell. Call the police department and get on the frequent patrols list, and our officers will check on your property while you're away."
He also suggests that residents be careful about who comes into the home, and never to give out personal banking or credit card information over the phone or internet. Finally, holidays can be extra stressful, Portillo acknowledged, urging motorists to respect pedestrian crosswalks and to obey all traffic signs, especially stop signs, stop lights and the speed limit.
And finally, don't forget about pet health and safety during the holidays. Outdoor animals must have adequate shelter, and free straw is available for a limited time from the High Desert Humane Society.
Christmas tree tinsel can be lethal for animals who play with it and ingest it, says Animal Control Officer Vickie Toney, and space heaters may also create pet hazards. Toney, who used to work in a veterinarian’s office, warns that sharing that heavy Thanksgiving meal with the pets can lead to pancreatitis. "Better to save the leftovers for humans," she says.
For more information, please contact the Silver City Police Department at (575) 538-3731, Ext. 2, and the Fire Department at Ext. 3. In an emergency, dial 911.