This Festive Trivia Quiz could save your life
Do you know how long you have to get out of your house in case of a fire? How about the type of extinguisher to use when putting out an electrical fire versus a grease fire?
Get cracking on our 12 days of Festive Fire Safety trivia quiz below.
Check the answers at the end and remember to share your score on LinkedIn or Facebook to let us know how you did!
1. How many people are injured in the UK by their Christmas tree every year?
a. 10
b. 100
c. 1,000
Did you know that a dehydrated Christmas Tree isn’t just at risk of going brown and dropping needles - it’s also a massive fire hazard? Check out this video of a dehydrated tree versus a watered tree, get watering and never place candles near your Christmas tree or furnishings.
It's vital cut trees are fresh when bought so ask when a tree was cut down before buying it. Needles should not be dry and dull or branches brittle. Needles on the outer part of the tree should not fall off when the tree is gently shaken. Pull your hand along a couple of the branches to the ends; needles on a healthy tree should not fall off. If choosing your own tree from a nursery or Christmas tree farm, bend a needle between your thumb and forefinger. It should form a "U" shape without breaking.
Top Tip: Did you know that you can keep your Christmas tree alive by buying a root balled tree that you can plant outdoors after Christmas? The roots will come wrapped with a ball of soil in plastic ready to be planted after Christmas!
2. What ratio of people in the UK have suffered an electric shock due to damaged Christmas lights?
a. 1 in 20
b. 1 in 40
c. 1 in 80
Check your Christmas tree lights conform to the British Standard (look for the BSI logo on the label and packaging). Each year inspect your lights for broken ones, frays or damaged wires, and damaged plugs.
Watch the video about checking Christmas Lights for safety and head over the the BSI website for more!
Top Tip: Don’t forget your pets; keep them away from your Christmas tree and make sure they don’t chew on lights or wires. Consider using cable guards or sprays to deter pets from biting or chewing wires - or the tree itself!
3. Between 1997 and 2010, how many people died in the UK from watering their Christmas tree with the lights on?
a. 6
b. 16
c. 26
Never skip watering your Christmas Tree (we’ve added another video to remind you why) secondly, you wouldn’t believe the number of videos we found of “how to water your tree” where they were watering with the lights plugged in.
Top Tip: Always unplug your Christmas lights before watering your tree folks!
4. Whilst we are on the topic, do you know which fire extinguisher to use on electrical fires?
a. Water or foam
b. Dry power or carbon dioxide
c. Water (with additive) or wet chemical
5. Do you know how many minutes you have to escape a house fire?
a. 3 to 5 minutes
b. 13 to 15 minutes
c. 25 to 30 minutes
Always make sure your Christmas visitors know what to do in a fire emergency - it’s a quick conversation that could save their lives. There's lots of extra stuff in your house when people come for Christmas; decorations, presents, bags. Add to that alcohol consumption, kids, loads of cooking, more appliance use than usual, candles and pets…you might want to put “fire escape conversation with guests” to the top of your Christmas day checklist.
Top tip: Be sure to let visitors know which exits to use if the front door is blocked by fire, and if any doors and windows will be locked, where the keys are. Check out London Fire Brigade’s tips on making an escape plan.
6. How many breaths of toxic smoke from a fire can render a person unconscious?
a. 2 - 3
b. 3 - 4
c. 4 - 5
Check out this video and notice how quickly the footage is completely blacked out by toxic smoke.
Smoke from a fire can render a person unconscious quickly and you have less time to escape than you think. It only takes a minute for festive celebrations to go up in smoke.
7. Which of the following statements about LED Christmas Tree lights are true? (hint: it could be more than one!)
a. You can use “indoor LED lights” outdoors too
b. Children and pets who touch a broken LED bulb are less likely to receive an electric shock
c. LED Christmas lights use much less energy so they are cool to the touch
The tree pictured has been decorated using a single string of lights on one plug.
Switching to LED Lights can do more than just save you money! LED Christmas lights use much less energy so they are cool to the touch and dim over time rather than burn out (like a traditional filament light bulb does). An added bonus is that if one bulb fails, the rest of the strip should remain the same (no more playing “hunt for the broken bulb”). LED Christmas string lights also have the benefit of being able to add way more bulbs per plug so there is no need to overload plug sockets with 5 sets of lights.
Top tip: Although LED lights are much safer to leave on for longer periods of time, environmentally, financially and fire safety-wise you should still switch them off when going out or going to bed. Transformers (which look like boxes either between the lights and the plug or on the plug itself) can still become warm so check them regularly and try to avoid covering them.
8. in which month are domestic fires most frequent?
a. August, because it’s the height of British summer
b. September, because more people are out of the house
c. December, because of Christmas fire risks
According to statistics published by the UK government, the emergency services responded to 37,740 domestic fire incidents in the country in a single year. These home fires caused 398 fatalities. Most fire-related fatalities are caused by smoke inhalation as a result of the fire, rather than by the fires themselves.
Between 2017 and 2019 UK fire services attended more than 2,300 fires on Christmas day! Household appliances cause 70% of domestic fires and Christmas-related items a further 11%. It’s no great surprise that the risk of accidents, especially in the kitchen, is greater after alcohol is consumed but did you know that most house fires start in the kitchen? Never leave cooking unattended or cook when under the influence of alcohol.
Top tip: If you are the chef of the family, this year why not try making a pledge to yourself that you will only drink once the food is served, the appliances are off and the kitchen is safe.
9. How many people in the UK admitted to putting lit candles beneath, next to or on their Christmas trees?
a. 2.9 million
b. 3.9 million
c. 4.9 million
What is the safest candle to leave alight whilst you’re out of the room? You guessed it! None of them.
You may think that candles in jars are much safer but did you know that if the wax burns too low, overheats or soot builds up, the jar can explode sending glass, hot wax and flame flying.
Top tip: Keep candles, lighters and matches out of reach of children and never leave burning candles unattended.
10. How many people in England over the age of 75 live alone?
a. 1 million
b. 2 million
c. 3 million
Take the time to check on elderly relatives and neighbours this Christmas and pass on these tips to make sure they are fire safe too. More than a million older people say they go for over a month without speaking to a friend, neighbour or family member. with Covid restrictions making the risk of loneliness much worse.
Top tip: Set up a neighbourhood phone around circle to check in on your elderly neighbours regularly and have a lovely chat whilst you’re at it! Why not do our ADE Fire Services Festive Fire Safety quiz with them to break the ice - and share some tips?
11. Do Christmas decorations have to conform to UK toy safety standards?
a. Of course!
b. Nope
c. It depends on the decoration
Anyone who has ever had kids around at Christmas will know that all those twinkly, sparkly decorations are super tempting for little ones to play with! Make sure children know not to touch the decorations, put fragile and glass ornaments and ones with small pieces on higher branches out of reach and don’t leave little ones unattended near a Christmas tree, candles, button batteries, an open fire, chestnuts roasting on an open fire, unattended reindeer, matches, kitchen appliances, tools, scissors, knives, hot fat, hot gravy, hot kettles...anything really. Safest just to watch them constantly. They are danger magnets.
12. In the event of a house fire what should you do?
a. Get out, stay out and call 999
(That’s a free point for everyone! Happy (safe and fire free) Christmas from all of us at ADE Fire Services.
Now check your scores below and remember to share your score on our LinkedIn or Facebook pages to let us know how you did!
Answers:
c (1000)
b (1 in 40)
c (26)
b. (Dry power or carbon dioxide)
a. (3 to 5 minutes)
a. (2 - 3)
b and c (NEVER USE INDOOR LIGHTS OUTDOORS!)
c. (December, because of Christmas fire risks)
c. (4.9 million)
b. (2 million)
b (nope)
Remember to: Get out, stay out and call 999
Remember to share your score on LinkedIn or Facebook to let us know how you did!
Data sources: Peabody, Tree Rater, National Accident Helpline, Property Reporter,