Mike Causey | Tips to keep your family safe this Christmas

Christmas is just around the corner. I wanted to share with you a list of home safety and driving tips to keep you and your family safe during the holiday season.

The holidays are a wonderful time to enjoy festive meals with family and friends and deck the halls with beautiful Christmas decorations. Folks are running errands, going shopping and traveling long distances to visit family and friends. It’s important to stay safe at all times at home and while driving, to avoid potentially dangerous accidents.

Use of candles and fireplaces, combined with an increase in the amount of combustible, seasonal decorations in many homes during the holidays, means increased risk for fire.

The National Fire Protection Association reports that one-third of home decoration fires are started by candles and that two of every five decoration fires happen because the decorations are placed too close to a heat source.

To cut down on this risk, I “offer these simple phrases kids from 1 to 92” can follow to avoid a fire in your house:

— Place candles out of reach of children and where they cannot be knocked down or blown over.

— Keep matches and lighters up high and out of reach of children in a locked cabinet.

— Use flameless candles near flammable objects.

— Do not burn Christmas trees, wreaths or wrapping paper in the fireplace.

— Use a screen on the fireplace at all times when a fire is burning.

— Never leave candles or fireplaces burning unattended or when asleep.

— Check and clean the chimney and fireplace area at least once a year.

— Do not plug in too many lights into a single electrical outlet, this can cause an overload. It’s important to keep wires away from heat sources such as space heaters and fireplaces.

According to the American Safety Council, most traffic accidents occur between the afternoon of Christmas Eve and the evening of Christmas Day. Data shows traffic accidents and fatalities decline when Christmas falls on a weekday instead of weekend, like it does this year.

Remember the following safety tips to keep your family safe on the roads during the holidays:

— Drive slowly. It’s harder to control or stop your vehicle on an ice or snow-covered roadway.

— Increase your following distance so that you’ll have plenty of time to stop for vehicles ahead of you.

— Always wear your seat belt and ensure that everyone else in your vehicle is buckled up.

— Know whether your vehicle has an anti-lock brake system. Anti-lock brake systems prevent your wheels from locking up during braking. If you have anti-lock brakes, apply firm, continuous pressure to the brake pedal. If you don’t have anti-lock brakes, you may need to pump the brakes if your wheels start to lock up.

Have a great Christmas and New Years. and God bless!