Fire Marshal: Be Mindful Of Candles On New Year's

WARMINSTER, PA — As Warminster residents prepare to ring in the new year, Warminster's fire marshal is reminding residents to be particularly careful when burning candles.

Fire Marshal Joe Velten said in a message to residents Monday that, over the past five years, candles have been one of the leading causes of fires in Warminster. Some of those fires, he said, resulted in "large fire losses."

According to the National Fire Protection Agency, the top three days for home candle fires each year are Christmas, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

"In Warminster Township, we have responded to these types of fires on these three holidays," Velten said. "Be extra vigilant with candles in your house."

He suggested that someone at holiday parties be made responsible for putting out candles at the end of the night. It's also time to be extra mindful of Christmas trees, which are getting older and could be drying out, making them more of a risk for fires.

Keep watering the tree if it's still healthy or consider getting it outside the home if it's not, Velten said. (Watch a dramatic NFPA video showing how quickly a dry tree can go up in flames here.)

He also noted that the holidays are a good time to add interconnected wired or wireless smoke detectors in the home, or test the ones you already have.

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