This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It's almost that most wonderful time of the year, when all is merry and bright — so don't ruin it by falling off the roof, shocking yourself or setting the house on fire.
Nationwide, at least 12,000 people a year go to emergency rooms because they got hurt putting up holiday decorations, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
"Falling from a ladder and stepping on broken ornaments may be funny in holiday movies," the commission stated in a news release, "but in real life, these and similar mishaps result in visits to the emergency room, or calls to fire departments, for thousands of consumers each year."
Most of the injuries — about a third — involved someone falling, mostly from ladders or roofs while decorating outdoors, according to the commission. Another 11 percent of them were cuts, and another 10 percent were back strains.
Up on the housetop, be careful. Roofs are slanted, "and it's easy to lose your balance if you're not careful," said Jasen Asay, Salt Lake City Fire Department spokesman.
Emergency responders see a lot of people injure themselves because of ladders, too. Not only should people have spotters hold the ladder, but also the ladder needs to be tall enough for the job.
"When using ladders, people should make sure it goes all the way up to the roof or the area where they're trying to get the lights," Asay said. The problem isn't just people standing on top of the ladder for a little extra reach, it's coming down from the roof, too. "If you can't necessarily see the ladder, you're forced to kneel and feel for the ladder, and [wrongly] hope to come down safely … without really seeing it."
When it comes to fires, crews nationwide battled an average of 210 blazes a year, from 2009 to 2013, because Christmas trees burst into flames, according to the National Fire Protection Association. The fires resulted in seven deaths, 19 injuries and $17.5 million in property loss.
A third of those tree fires began because of an electrical problem. The consumer protection commission recommends that people turn off all of the lights on their trees, as well as other decorations, when they go to bed or leave the house.
Asay also advised people to check their lights for loose or damaged wires sticking out, before plugging them in.
"They're stored for most of the year," Asay said. "They get wrapped up and that can be damaging."
He also advised to make sure that the lights aren't somewhere where they would be lying in puddles of water when snow melts.
To avoid getting hurt, the safety commission includes these tips on its website:
• Don't put trees by heat sources like fireplaces and heaters. And if it's a real tree, make sure it stays hydrated.
• When decorating a tree at a home with small children or animals, avoid sharp, weighted or breakable decorations. Trimmings with small, removable parts should stay out of the reach of kids.
• Check each set of lights, new or old, for broken or cracked sockets, frayed or bare wires, or loose connections. If they are damaged, throw them away or fix them before using them.
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