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Holiday season is most active season for fires

Amid the bustle of the holiday season, you might not know it's also one of the most deadly and dangerous times for house fires.

Amid the bustle of the holiday season, you might not know it's also one of the most deadly and dangerous times for house fires.

In that glorious time between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, you can expect to hear from fire truck siren nearby because more cooking and more people increase the likelihood of more fires.

Parma firefighter, TJ Martin, said even though Christmas might be over, the risk is still high.

"It's not necessarily the time you'd see that since the Christmas decorations are down, that the potential for fire goes down,” Martin said. “We're just in the house more."

In the Bronx, a five-story building was destroyed by fire and 12 people lost their lives as a result of a three-year-old playing with the stove.

It's a tragedy that fire experts said we could learn from.

“Part of the contributing factor of the fire spread in that NYC fire was that when they exited the apartment where the fire was, they left the door open,” Martin said.

If you happen to notice a fire, close the doors.

"A fire needs three things to maintain: it needs a fuel source, it needs heat and it needs oxygen,” Martin said. “Without one of those elements, the fire will go out.”

If you are planning to leave, know where to go.

"Exit drills in the home, it's a fantastic way to teach your kids to know two ways out, and practice the exit drills,” Martin said.

Fires don't discriminate, you could be putting someone else in danger if a fire breaks out.

Just recently in Cleveland, a firefighter was hospitalized while battling a fire on E 99th.

Martin also referenced the power outage on Cleveland's west side this week, he said if you don't have power and need to warm up, there are safe ways to do it – just bundle up.

"People were using their stove tops and their oven to heat their homes because they had no furnace,” Martin said. “When we use a stove or an oven in the capacity that it's not meant to be used for, we create an excess amount of carbon monoxide."

Remember, the first line of defense is to install a working carbon monoxide and smoke detector.

Often times, that equipment will detect a fire before we even notice it.

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