Be careful with candles during holiday season

Published 11:55 am Thursday, February 21, 2008

By John Westfall

For the Enterprise

A candle can bring festivity to your holiday celebrations. But a simple votive is an open flame that also creates burns, causes property damage, and can bring fatal tragedy to your household celebration.

According to the National Candle Association, 70 percent of households use candles in the United States. Most people don’t see candles as a major fire hazard, but according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) in 1998 candle fires reached a 19-year high of 12,540 fires, 157 deaths, 1,106 injuries, and an estimated $176.1 million in property damage. Unattended, abandoned or inadequately controlled candles are the leading cause of home candle fires (37 percent), followed by leaving candles too close to combustibles (119 percent), according to annual averages from 1994-1998. Almost half of home candle fires start in the bedroom.

During this same period, 9 percent of candle fires were started by children playing with candles.

NFPA provides simple safety guidelines for safe candle burning. First, extinguish all candles when leaving the room or going to sleep. Next. simply keep candles away from items that can catch fire, like clothing, paper, Christmas trees and Halloween decorations. Use only noncombustible candle holders, but remember that glass and metal holders get hot and can scorch wooden furniture.

Candles should stay away from windows where blinds or curtains can blow over the flame and ignite. Trim candle wicks to a quarter inch each time before burning. Long or crooked wicks cause uneven burning and dripping. Lastly, always keep candles out of reach of children. Matches are a tool that should be kept away from smaller hands.

Have a wonderful holiday celebration. If you burn candles for holiday festivities, make sure your candles burn safe.

John Westfall is Fire Marshal for the Edmonds Fire Department.