Distractions while cooking is the No. 1 cause of home fires, so if you are cooking, please stay in the kitchen while preparing food.

If you have to leave the kitchen for any reason, turn off the burner or stove.

Keeping young ones safe

If you are lighting candles of any sort, matches and lighters may look like toys to our little ones. Keep them out of sight and keep children in your sight.

Additional safety

Although it is a time to celebrate and spend time with family and friends, it is also statistically a time that a fire in the home is more likely to occur. With this in mind, we encourage everyone to be extra cautious.

• Keep your holiday trees watered to avoid drying out.
• Unplug lights when going out or going to bed.
• If you allow family members and guests to smoke indoors, check to make sure cigarette butts are completely out.
• Keep holiday decorations, table runners, curtains or other materials at least one metre away from heating sources.
• Don’t overload the electrical outlets — unplug what you don’t need.
• With relatives staying over and more people visiting your home, ensure you have working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and that everyone knows how to escape in the event of an emergency.