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Up in flames: Spokane Valley Fire Department torches Christmas tree in holiday safety demonstration

Spokane Valley Fire Department demonstrates at its training facility how quickly a real Christmas tree can catch fire and destroy the room where it’s set up. Nationally, about 160 Christmas tree fires happen each year. This tree, one that hadn’t dried out yet was fully engulfed in flames in about a minute. (Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review)
By Garrett Cabeza garrettc@spokesman.com(509) 459-5135

A decorated Christmas tree with presents underneath was engulfed in flames in about a minute Thursday afternoon in Spokane Valley.

The Spokane Valley Fire Department torched the tree and holiday gifts inside one of its training “burn cells” to illustrate the potential danger Christmas trees present when not watered.

Flames filled much of the burn cell, or small wooden shed, at the department’s training facility as smoke billowed out the front door before Jeff Willits, engineer and fire investigator at the fire department, extinguished the flames with a fire hose.

Fire departments across the U.S. responded to an average of 160 Christmas tree fires each year between 2016 and 2020, according to the National Fire Protection Association. One out of every 32 of the fires resulted in a fatality.

Spokane Valley Assistant Fire Marshal Lee Bauder said Spokane Valley firefighters haven’t responded to these types of fires recently.

“They don’t catch on fire a lot, but when they do, they cause a lot of problems,” Bauder said.

Bauder said dry trees, placing trees too close to heat sources and using decorative lights on the trees are the primary culprits for Christmas tree fires.

Many tree fires happen right before and just after Christmas when trees had time to dry up and owners stopped watering them, he said.

Keeping trees away from heat sources and home exits, replacing strings of lights that have worn cords or loose bulb connections, and watering trees daily reduce fire risk, according to the fire department.

The department said people should never use lit candles to decorate a tree.

Bauder also said to turn Christmas lights on trees off before going to bed.

“The last thing that you want is to be asleep and to have a fire,” he said.

If a tree does catch fire, people inside the home should evacuate immediately and find a safe space outside. He said people should also ensure their smoke detectors work.

“Everybody knows, the things are replaceable,” Bauder said. “The people aren’t.”