Christmas safety tips will ensure that you and your family are safe during this period of celebration.
This season is a magical period where all decorations and lights are in most places like homes, houses, schools, churches and companies for beautification.
Christmas is equally a time when your home is likely to be filled with people from family and friends. And the excitement it brings can give rise to incidents.
With a lot more carefulness and planning, the prevention of accidents can happen.
However, here are a few safety tips to keep in mind during this season.
Christmas safety tips while in the home.
- Ensure you keep decorations in your homes away from fire. They can be a source of fuel for a fire. Turn the decoration off, the lights, whenever you want to sleep or on your way out of your house.
- If your Christmas tree is a live tree, always remember to fill the sand with water to prevent heat generated in the room from drying the tree. A dry tree is a fire hazard.
- If you’re using a ladder for decoration, please ensure you’re using a good ladder and correctly place the ladder in a good position. Be aware of overhead hazards or overhead power lines to avoid contact that may cause electrocution.
- Be careful how you use your extension cords during this period. Always ensure you don’t plug many appliances on it. Overloading of the extension cable can result in an explosion or fire.
- Supervise the smoke alarms you have in your home at least once every month. Your smoke alarms should be working to help detect any smoke rising from the fire. Having a good smoke detector can make a huge difference in containing a fire in your home.
- Avoid having trailing cables at home. Trailing cables can cause trip and fall. Keep your electrical cable away from walkways, staircases or places where there is a movement of people in your home.
- Ensure you secure your homes in this season because of theft. Make sure that your doors are secure rightly. You can consider using Smart technologies to keep abreast of what is happening in your home environment when you’re not available.
- If there are smokers in your home, always ensure they don’t smoke in the closet. Let them smoke outside the rooms.
- Ensure you use candles with care at all times as this may trigger home fires. If possible, use a battery-operated candle. Avoid using traditional candles in your home.
- Avoid putting your holiday plans online such as Facebook, as this may give room for people to monitor your movement and know when you’re not available in your home. With this, the burglars can get access to your home.
Christmas safety tips in the kitchen
- If you’re cooking, always ensure that you plan for the cooking as anything rushed will likely expose you to an accident. If there is a spill, kindly clean it up immediately to avoid slip and fall.
- Be in the kitchen when the food is on fire. Do not leave the food unattended at any time while cooking.
- Don’t open packages with your mouth. This may likely expose your teeth to danger. Make provisions for scissors at all times in your homes.
- Clean your fridge with soap and make it ready for food storage.
- Always buy the right food items. Check whatever you are buying to avoid expired foods.
- Ensure you preserve your food, meat and vegetables inside a fridge to prevent contamination.
- Left-over food has to be put in the fridge to prevent contamination. Moreover, allow the food to cool before putting it into your refrigerator for at least 2 hours after cooking.
Christmas safety tips for children.
- If you have pets and kids in the same house, ensure you monitor the pets and show extra precaution to prevent the pets from causing any harm.
- Check all the gifts you are buying for your kids. Ensure you provide items according to their age group. And let it be from a reputable shop to prevent buying things that can cause harm to your kids.
- Always be on the lookout for Items like Nylon or batteries which can cause choking for children when they tamper with them.
- Keep most items out of reach of children.
- Remove alcohol away from kids as alcohol can poison young children.
Christmas safety tips for travelling.
- You can notify your neighbour of any move for travel but a trusted one. A trusted neighbour will keep watch over your house for you.
- If you are driving, be a defensive driver on the road.
- If you have to drink, do not drive. Alcohol and driving do not go together. Driving a vehicle under an alcohol influence has always been one of the causes of accidents on the road.
- For a long drive, Please service your vehicle to avoid breaking down on the road.
- Sleep well if you have to engage on a long drive to avoid sleeping on the wheel.
Christmas safety tips conclusion.
Well, your safety during the Christmas season should be important to you. I encourage you to use the safety tips listed above for yourself.
Onyeka Emma is a QHSE Professional with more than 10 years of experience in occupational health and safety, which spans many industries such as construction, beverage, oil and gas, etc. He has many health and safety certifications, including NEBOSH IGC, ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, and ISO 45001:2018 Lead auditor certificate. A member of IOSH, ISPON, and Nigeria Red Cross Society. He is interested in business, entrepreneurship, Speaking, and motivating people to do better for themselves. He enjoys leisure with a good motivational book.