Have a fire safe holiday season Published Dec. 22, 2008 By Fire Prevention Section 51st Civil Engineering Squadron OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea -- This is the season where family and friends come together to enjoy the holidays. To ensure you and your family have an enjoyable and safe holiday, Osan Fire Department would like to past on a few fire safety tips: Natural Trees - Pick the freshest tree, pinch the needles if they break or fall off easily pass this tree up. - Trees should be less than eight feet tall if you want to have a chance of your tree making it through the season. - Re-cut the tree with a diagonal cut or wedge shape - Place it in fresh water and check water daily and add water as needed - Trees should never be placed next to any heat source, doors or in a path of travel to any exits - Natural trees are only allowed in military family housing units; all other base facilities must use artificial trees Artificial Trees - Artificial trees need to checked to ensure they have a fire resistive rating before they are purchased Holiday decorating & lighting - Use caution with holiday decorations and whenever possible, choose those made with flame-resistant, flame retardant or non-combustible materials. - Keep candles away from decorations and other combustible materials, and do not use candles to decorate Christmas trees. - Purchase only lights and electrical decorations bearing the name of an independent testing lab, and follow the manufacturer's instructions for installation and maintenance. - Carefully inspect new and previously used light strings and replace damaged items before plugging lights in. Do not overload extension cords. - Check your strands of lights to determine the number of strands that may be connected. Connect no more than three strands of push-in bulbs and a maximum of 50 bulbs for screw-in bulbs. - Always unplug lights before replacing light bulbs or fuses. - Do not mount lights in any way that can damage the cords wire insulation (i.e., using staples, clips, or nails). - Keep children and pets away from light strings and electrical decorations. - Turn off all light strings and decorations before leaving the house or going to bed. Holiday entertaining - Unattended cooking is the leading cause of home fires in the U.S. When cooking for holiday visitors, remember to keep an eye on the range. - Wherever you smoke, provide plenty of large, deep ashtrays and check them frequently. Cigarette butts can smolder in the trash and cause a fire, so completely douse cigarette butts with water before discarding. - After a party, always check on, between and under upholstery, cushions, and inside trash cans for cigarette butts that may be smoldering. - Keep matches and lighters up high, out of sight and reach of children (preferably in a locked cabinet). When smokers visit your home, ask them to keep their smoking materials with them so young children do not touch them. - Test your smoke detector and let guests know what your fire escape plan is. Help keep Osan fire safe throughout holiday season. For more information, contact the Fire Prevention Section at 784-6835.