St. Catharines Fire Services kicks off 12 Days of Holiday Fire Safety campaign

St. Catharines Fire Services is reminding residents and property owners to take proper precautions to stay fire and carbon monoxide safe as the holiday season and celebrations approach.

The fire department began promotion today of the Ontario Office of the Fire Marshal’s annual 12 Days of Holiday Fire Safety campaign, with a different fire safety theme each day and tips on what you can do to keep the holidays fire safe. The 12 Days of Holiday Fire Safety campaign runs from Dec. 12 through Dec. 23.

“Most fatal fires occur during the holiday season,” St. Catharines Fire Chief Dave Upper said. “Prevention is the best way to stay fire safe. Protect yourself and your loved ones and ensure you have working smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms in your home, test them monthly, replace the batteries, and practice your home escape plan. Most fatal residential fires did not have working smoke alarms.”

Chief Upper encouraged families and property owners to follow St. Catharines Fire Services’ 12 Days of Holiday Fire Safety campaign and pay attention to advice that can keep your family safe this holiday season. Each day of the campaign, Fire Services will share a different safety tip on its X account (formerly Twitter), as will the City on its X, Facebook, and Instagram accounts.

Schedule of the 12 Days of Holiday Fire Safety topics:

• Day 1 (Dec. 12): Holiday Lights             
• Day 2 (Dec. 13): Tree Watering
• Day 3 (Dec. 14): Candles and Decorations
• Day 4 (Dec. 15): Smoke Alarms
• Day 5 (Dec. 16): Carbon Monoxide Alarms
• Day 6 (Dec. 17): Extension Cords
• Day 7 (Dec. 18): Kids in the Kitchen
• Day 8 (Dec. 19): Home Fire Escape Plan
• Day 9 (Dec. 20): Cooking
• Day 10 (Dec. 21): Heating Sources
• Day 11 (Dec. 22): Smoking
• Day 12 (Dec. 23) Lithium-Ion Batteries

The entire 12-day list of safety tips can be found at stcatharines.ca/HolidayFireSafety.

Quick Facts

The Ontario Office of the Fire Marshal data indicates:

• The months of November to January experience the highest number of residential fire deaths.
• Cooking remains the top cause of residential fires, while careless smoking remains the top cause of fatal fires.
• Last holiday season (November 2024 to January 2025) saw 24 residential fatal fires in Ontario, resulting in 26 fire deaths.
• Smoke alarms should be tested monthly, batteries replaced annually, and the alarms replaced after 10 years of service.