With the holiday season in full swing the risk of a home fire may increase if households use certain decorations.

Jefferson Fire Chief Jack Williams reminds everyone that an outlet that has two plug-ins are only meant to have two things plugged into them.

“So if you get the adapter that has the six, or eight, or 12 plug-ins you’re overloading the system and causing a potential fire risk. So just make sure that you’re not plugging too much stuff in.”     

Williams points out that this is especially important for those individuals that use holiday lights or other decorations that require electricity to be mindful of how you are utilizing the outlets. He advises households that have a live Christmas tree to make sure that there is always water in the tray to keep the tree from drying out, have good and working lights, keep away from other heat sources and always unplug the lights before going to bed.

“They are extremely flammable and can actually fully engulf a house in about three minutes if they catch fire. So there are very dangerous as far as fire hazards.”

Williams adds to having fire extinguishers located nearby a Christmas tree to more easily control a fire, if the tree starts on fire and then call 911, as well as having an extinguisher by the kitchen and checking your home’s smoke detectors to make sure those are working properly.