Report: NFPA's "Home Structure Fires That Began with Decorations"
Author: Marty Aherns
Issued: November 2010
This analysis of home fires beginning with decorations includes information on when these fires occur, area of origin, recent trends and causal factors.
Executive Summary
On average, 1,170 home structure fires began with decorations each year.
During the five-year period of 2004-2008, decorations were the items first ignited in an estimated average of 1,170 reported home structure fires per year. Homes include one- and two-family homes, apartments, row houses, townhouses, and manufactured housing. Decorations are not further defined. Christmas trees are captured in a separate category and not included here.1
Home fires that began with decorations caused an average of eight civilian deaths, 54 civilian injuries, and $19.1 million in direct property damage per year. Overall, decorations were first ignited in 0.3% of reported home structure fires, 0.1% of home fire deaths, 0.4% of home fire injuries, and 0.4% of direct property damage from home fires.
1 See NFPA’s 2010 report Home Christmas Tree and Holiday Light Fires, also by Marty Ahrens.
