“Keep the Wreath Green” Campaign To Prevent Fires

CHAPEL HILL – With the holiday season upon us again, the Chapel Hill Fire Department begins their “Keep the Wreath Green” campaign to prevent residential fires.

During the “Keep the Wreath Green” campaign, the Chapel Hill Fire Department will display and illuminated wreath on the front of Fire Station No. 1 on MLK.  The wreath will be lit with all green lights, but for each residential fire that occurs, a red light will be installed.

Chapel Hill Fire Department Public Information Officer, Lisa Edwards, says they hope the wreath encourages fire safety.

“Our strategy and our goal is as people drive by and they see the wreath, and all of the bulbs are green, we want to remind people to practice as much home fire safety as possible so we can keep the wreath green” Edwards says.

The Chapel Hill Fire Department releases a lot of information on how to keep your home safe from fires during the holiday season when many people use lights, candles, and fireplaces more often.  Edwards says research shows December is the month for fire.

“When we pull data from the United States Fire Administration report, it shows us that most the highest incident of resident fires happen in December” Edwards states.

You can help avoid holiday fires by not overloading circuits with lights, keep trees away from open flames or a direct heating sources, and being careful when cooking holiday foods.  Edwards says they hope to repeat the results from last year.

“We hit the mark last year with no residential fires during the month of December, first time ever, and so we are looking for that again this year” Edwards says.

For more information on how to prevent fires during the holiday season you can click here.