ESFI Offers Important Tips for Entertaining Safely this Holiday Season

ESFI Offers Important Tips for Entertaining Safely this Holiday Season

Arlington, VA (Vocus) December 16, 2010

According to a recent consumer survey conducted by the Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI), nearly 60 percent of people plan to host guests in their homes during this holiday season.

The winter holiday season is a festive and eventful time of year that traditionally includes notable increases in celebrations, family gatherings, and the presence of overnight houseguests. But statistics show that incidents of home fires and electrical accidents typically increase during the winter holiday season.

“Preparing for the arrival of guests in the midst of the hectic holiday season can be challenging,” notes ESFI president Brett Brenner. “While festive decorations and savory food may seem like the most important aspects of holiday entertaining, remember not to overlook the safety of your guests.”

ESFI’s annual holiday safety awareness campaign encourages families and communities across the country to Make Safety a Tradition of the holiday season. This year, ESFI is working in conjunction with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and The Home Depot® to educate Americans about the safety concerns associated with holiday entertaining.

Keep these simple safety tips from ESFI in mind to help ensure that your home is ready for all of the festive activities the holiday season brings:

Test your smoke alarms monthly and make sure that your house is protected by an adequate number of working alarms.

Share your fire escape plan, including the location of your outside meeting place, with your overnight guests. Everyone should know at least two ways out of each room in your home.

Use space heaters properly and safely. Keep them out of high-traffic and exit areas, and at least 3 feet from anything that can burn.

Do not leave a space heater running unattended. Turn space heaters off when you leave the room or go to sleep.

Keep young visitors in mind. Place breakables, candles and other potentially dangerous items out of their reach.

In homes with young children, install tamper resistant receptacles to prevent electrical shocks and burns, or use safety covers on all unused outlets that are accessible to children.

Never leave cooking equipment unattended. Keep children at least 3 feet away from cooking appliances.

Keep all decorations 3 feet away from heat sources.

Turn off and unplug all decorations before leaving home or going to sleep.

Avoid overloading electrical outlets. Check outlets regularly for problems, including overheating, loose connections, reversed polarity, and corrosion.

Test ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) and arc fault circuit interrupters (AFCI) to ensure that they are working properly.

“A proactive approach to safety will help you give the gift of safety to your family and friends this holiday season,” says Brenner.

Visit ESFI’s holiday safety website, http://www.holidaysafety.org, throughout the holiday season for all of the safety tips and tools you need to Make Safety a Tradition for your family.

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