LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The effort to find the next poet laureate for Lake County is underway.
Georgina Marie Guardado, the current poet laureate, officially announced the search.
“It has been my honor to serve two consecutive terms in this role during a period of history that was undoubtedly challenging for all of us. And yet, the power of words did not yield. Our county undoubtedly has a rich literary community and I look forward to the search for the next Poet Laureate!” Guardado said in a Facebook post.
The poet laureate, which is a volunteer post, represents and promotes poetry and literacy in the community.
The person filling the role also will help “facilitate collaborations between local creatives, cultural organizations, local businesses, and community institutions,” according to the online application.
The Board of Supervisors established the poet laureate post in 1998.
Guardado has held the post for two terms since 2020.
She is the youngest Lake County poet laureate, as well as its first Hispanic American female.
Guardado also is the first person to be appointed to the office for more than one term, and the 11th individual to hold it.
The next term will be for 2024 to 2026.
She reported that applications — which opened on Dec. 15 — will be accepted through Feb. 1, 2024.
Visit this website to see application guidelines and to apply online.
For questions or assistance with the application, email Guardado at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Why are there small and big black holes? Also, why are some black holes invisible and others have white outlines? – Sedra and Humaid, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Black holes are dense astronomical objects with gravity so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape. Anything that crosses the boundary of a black hole’s gravitational influence, called the event horizon, will fall into the black hole. Inside this deep, dense pit, it is never to be seen again.
Black holes litter the universe. Some smaller black holes are sprinkled randomly throughout galaxies like our Milky Way. Other gigantic ones, called “supermassive” black holes, lie at the centers of galaxies. Those can weigh anywhere between a million to a billion times the mass of our Sun. So you might be wondering: How can astronomers possibly see something so dark and so big?
I am an astronomer who studies the very first supermassive black holes that formed in our universe. I want to understand how black holes form and what kinds of astrophysical neighborhoods they grow up in.
Stellar mass black holes are only a few times bigger than our Sun. Supermassive black holes are more of a mystery, though. They are many millions of times heavier than our Sun, and they are packed into a small area that’s about the size of our solar system. Some scientists think supermassive black holes might form by many stars colliding and collapsing at once, while others think they might have already started growing several billion years ago.
Growing black holes
What do black holes look like? Most of the time, they are not actively growing, so they are invisible. But we can tell they’re there because stars can still orbit around them, just like Earth around the Sun.
When something is orbiting an invisible object at high speeds, scientists know there must be a massive black hole in the middle. This is the case for the closest supermassive black hole to us, which lies at the center of the Milky Way – safely millions of miles away from you.
Meanwhile, when a hungry black hole is eating up gas in a galaxy, it heats that gas up until you can see a glowing ring of X-rays, optical light and infrared light around the black hole. Once it exhausts all of the fuel near the event horizon, the light dies down once again and it becomes invisible.
Outlines around black holes
One of the most famous “white outlines” is the image of a black hole from the movie “Interstellar.” In that movie, they were trying to show the white-hot, glowing ring of gases that are falling into the actively growing black hole.
In real life, we don’t get such a close-up view. The best image of the ring around a real black hole comes from the Event Horizon Telescope, showing scientists the supermassive black hole at the center of a galaxy called M87. It might look blurry to you, but this doughnut is actually the sharpest image ever taken of something so far away.
There are lots of types of black holes out there in the universe. Some are small and invisible, and some grow to gigantic proportions by eating up stuff inside a galaxy and shining bright. But don’t worry, black holes can’t just keep sucking in everything in the universe – eventually there is nothing close enough to the black hole to fall in, and it will become invisible again. So you are safe to keep asking questions about black holes.
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And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.
Did you know that we often have more control over our feelings and anxiety than we think?
’Tis the season ... for stress. Between bright lights, airport security lines and fallen souffles, we are more overscheduled, overstretched and overwhelmed during the holiday season than at almost any other time of the year.
But there’s good news. We have much more control over stress and our emotions than we think, says UC San Francisco Professor of Psychiatry Elissa Epel, PhD. Epel’s book, The Stress Prescription: Seven Days to More Joy and Ease was recently named a favorite book of 2023 by Greater Good Magazine.
She explains how we can make taking control of our stress — and cultivating joy — a habit this holiday season.
What does stress do to our bodies?
We have looked at stress under the microscope, investigating how it can change our cells, right down to our telomeres — the “shields” at the ends of our chromosomes’ that protect the DNA inside. Telomere length is an important index of a cell’s health and ability to keep dividing. Telomeres naturally shorten with age, but chronic stress wears them out faster.
In short, when we’re too stressed for too long, it accelerates biological aging. Diseases like diabetes, heart disease and depression can develop or develop early.
What are micro-acts of wellness?
Micro-acts are quick practices of just a few minutes that can reduce stress and cultivate happiness, often involving focusing on the beauty and joy in life. People who performed just one micro-act daily for a week reported about a 25% increase in emotional well-being and feelings of connectedness to others, according to early results from a large, crowd-sourcing study we have conducted with colleagues at UC Berkeley. As part of the study, more than 20,000 people from 30 countries tried a micro-act for five minutes each day for one week. Anyone can join.
Why are micro-acts so powerful?
When we see that we can do something for just a few minutes, and that it can change how we feel, we actually alter our belief about our capacity to control our wellness. We call this a growth mindset: We increase our confidence in our ability to have some control over our well being. This new mindset, in turn, has a potent effect on whether we’re likely to make micro-acts a habit or not.
What are some examples of micro-acts?
Do something kind for someone. Think of people you might see today and list one thing you could do to brighten their day. For example, during the holidays it’s incredibly powerful to reach out to people we suspect don’t have friends, local family or social plans.
Tune in to what matters. Choose three values in your life — for example, kindness, community and social justice — and think of an example of how you are living them. Make a plan of how you want to embody one of them more in the coming year.
Reframe your perspective. Recall a recent moment when you felt upset and frustrated. Think about or write out three positive things about that experience. Focusing on the hidden positives is powerful. It can lessen your painful narrative of what happened.
The holidays are stressful, there are more demands on us, and we set higher expectations for how the holidays should go. But this is also an opportunity to realize the joy inherent in holiday stress and that it’s a privilege to be able to take time away from work to reflect and relax.
Breathe. People have used various breathing practices for millennia to energize, relax and even create ecstatic states.
Here’s a slow breathing technique that can calm our body immediately.
Try sitting up straight with your chest up, chin down.
Breathe slowly and gently with your mouth closed, drawing a deep breath into your diaphragm. Breathe in for four seconds and out for six seconds for maximal stress release.
Meditate. Meditation has long been a part of my stress-management plan, both short daily practices and, when I am lucky, overnight retreats. Consider planning a retreat in 2024, for a deeper recalibration of your nervous system. There are many local opportunities in the Bay Area.
Dwell in awe. Watch an awe-inspiring video or, if possible, get out in nature. Make it a point to stop and marvel at the trees or views, feel the temperature of the air on your skin and listen to the birds chirping. If you don’t have a lot of nature near you, there’s always sky.
Our bodies are not only very attuned to having a relaxation response to nature, but increasing research shows that awe is a transformative emotion — the feeling of being in the presence of and part of something larger than oneself can snap things into perspective for us. When we are reminded of the world’s grandeur, personal issues that seemed large and looming may suddenly shrink.
If you can’t get out into nature, set up a quiet, comfortable “chill” space at home and search YouTube or Spotify for your favorite relaxing music with nature sounds.
Expose yourself to positive stress. When we are exposed to short-term manageable positive stressors, called hormetic stress, our body turns on different responses than it does with chronic stress. During our recovery period from hormetic stress, good things happen. It has an anti-anxiety effect on our nervous system, and an anti-aging effect in our cells. Hormetic stress triggers processes akin to cleaning crews gobbling up waste from the day’s metabolic processes and recycling it.
To create positive stress, try a quick seven-minute high-intensity exercise or take an ice-cold shower: After the ice-cold shower, wrap up in a warm towel: Stress then recover and relax. It feels good, and it’s good for our cells.
Make a gratitude list. List anything, big or small, you feel grateful about. Gratitude is one of the most potent ways to increase positive emotions. For a bigger boost, tell someone how much you appreciate them.
Celebrate another’s joy. Ask someone to tell you about something good that happened to them recently or about something they are happy about. “What made you smile today?” Let them tell the story. You will find their happiness is re-ignited, and you may smile too!
How can we make micro-acts a habit?
• Notice how it feels after you’ve completed a micro-act. Savor any positive feelings. • Set aside a time each day to pause for a wellness micro-act. Put a reminder on your daily calendar and a Post-it note in the place where you want to practice it. • Try “stapling” micro-acts to another habit you already do. For example, try two minutes of slow breathing while you start your commute or before you turn off your light at night.
Laura López González writes for the University of California, San Francisco.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — There are many dogs at Lake County Animal Care and Control waiting to be adopted during the holidays.
Dogs available for adoption this week include mixes of Australian shepherd, border collie, Chihuahua, Doberman pinscher, German shepherd, Great Pyrenees, hound, Labrador retriever, pit bull, Queensland heeler, shepherd and terrier.
Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
Those dogs and the others shown on this page at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption.
Call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278 or visit the shelter online for information on visiting or adopting.
The shelter is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — On Friday, Blue Shield of California and Adventist Health announced that they have settled their monthslong contract dispute that had resulted in Blue Shield members not having access to Adventist hospitals.
The contract between Blue Shield of California and Adventist Health Keep Care Local | Adventist Health provides Blue Shield members in-network access to all 18 Adventist hospitals across California.
In a joint statement, the two organizations reported that the new arrangement’s effective date is retroactive three weeks, to Dec. 1 — the date when the contract dispute resulted in Adventist Health hospital facilities no longer being part of Blue Shield’s network.
“As a mission-driven health plan, our goal is for our members to have access to quality care that’s sustainably affordable,” said Aliza Arjoyan, Blue Shield’s senior vice president of provider partnerships and network management. “Adventist Health has been a part of Blue Shield’s network of providers for a long time, and I look forward to continued collaboration with the hospital system.”
“We are pleased to continue our long-working relationship with Blue Shield of California,” says Kerry L. Heinrich, president and CEO. “Our mission calls us to provide access to high-quality care close to home in the communities we serve, and we are excited to continue caring for Blue Shield members.”
Adventist and Blue Shield have been in negotiations for nearly a year, and the attempts to come to a new contract broke down by the end of November.
On Monday, Kim Lewis, spokesperson for Adventist Health Clear Lake, told Lake County News that Adventist Health remained open to discussions.
Lewis said she couldn’t say how many Lake County residents were affected by the contract issues. “Blue Shield will not currently share the number of members with Adventist Health who are impacted. They are the only ones who have this information as the health insurance provider.”
Statewide, Blue Shield reported that it serves more than 4.8 million members through network relationships with about 350 hospitals and more than 122,000 providers across the state.
Then, on Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors approved a letter urging both sides to come to an agreement and pointing to Lake County’s low health rankings.
The letter recognized that transportation can be difficult for many in Lake County. Blue Shield had suggested by that point that its Lake County members travel to Enloe Medical Center or Oroville Hospital in Butte County, Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa County or Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital for Blue Shield facilities that can provide the care they need.
During that Tuesday discussion, Supervisor Bruno Sabatier pointed out that 51% of Lake County’s population is covered by Medi-Cal.
The letter was approved unanimously.
It explained, “While Blue Shield does not represent a large portion of the health coverage in Lake County it still represents a significant portion of our community members being impacted by this terminated contract. Lake County is 56th out of 58 counties when reviewing our health rankings in the State of California. Any action that breaks the continuity of care that our community members require exacerbates the health issues that we are already encountering across our county.”
Editor’s note: The article previously stated incorrectly that 51% of Lake County’s population is covered by Medicare, when in fact it is Medi-Cal.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
This whirling image features a bright spiral galaxy known as MCG-01-24-014, which is located about 275 million light-years from Earth.
In addition to being a well-defined spiral galaxy, MCG-01-24-014 has an extremely energetic core known as an active galactic nucleus, or AGN, and is categorized as a Type-2 Seyfert galaxy. Seyfert galaxies, along with quasars, host one of the most common subclasses of AGN.
While the precise categorization of AGNs is nuanced, Seyfert galaxies tend to be relatively nearby and their central AGN does not outshine its host, while quasars are very distant AGNs with incredible luminosities that outshine their host galaxies.
There are further subclasses of both Seyfert galaxies and quasars. In the case of Seyfert galaxies, the predominant subcategories are Type-1 and Type-2. Astronomers distinguish them by their spectra, the pattern that results when light is split into its constituent wavelengths.
The spectral lines that Type-2 Seyfert galaxies emit are associated with specific ‘forbidden’ emission lines.
To understand why emitted light from a galaxy could be forbidden, it helps to understand why spectra exist in the first place.
Spectra look the way they do because certain atoms and molecules absorb and emit light at very specific wavelengths.
The reason for this is quantum physics: electrons (the tiny particles that orbit the nuclei of atoms and molecules) can only exist at very specific energies, and therefore electrons can only lose or gain very specific amounts of energy.
These very specific amounts of energy correspond to the wavelengths of light that are absorbed or emitted.
Forbidden emission lines should not exist according to certain rules of quantum physics. But quantum physics is complex, and some of the rules used to predict it were formulated under laboratory conditions here on Earth.
Under those rules, this emission is ‘forbidden’ — so improbable that it’s disregarded. But in space, in the midst of an incredibly energetic galactic core, those assumptions don’t hold anymore, and the ‘forbidden’ light gets a chance to shine out toward us.
A record number of Californians are reported to be traveling this holiday season, one of the busiest holiday periods AAA has tracked in more than 20 years.
More than 115.2 million people are expected to travel during the holiday between Dec. 23 and Jan. 1. That number is 2.2% higher than last year and marks the second-highest number since 2000.
More than 15.4 million Calfornians will be among those packing their bags, beating the previous record set in 2019 by 2.6%.
“The travel outline for the year-end holidays echoes what we’ve been seeing in travel throughout 2023,” said Brian Ng, senior vice president of membership and travel marketing for AAA Northern California. “Despite high costs, more Americans are prioritizing creating memories with loved ones and exploring new destinations.”
The organization said drivers should anticipate up to 20% longer travel times nationwide.
The heaviest congestion is expected Saturday, Dec. 23, and Thursday, Dec. 28.
AAA Northern California urges people to check the forecast, consider reservations for airport parking spots and avoid checking luggage if possible, make sure your vehicle is ready and to travel during off-peak periods.
The California Highway Patrol is once again holding its Christmas Day Maximum Enforcement Period, or MEP.
This additional enforcement initiative aims to enhance the safety of the public on California’s roads during the busy travel period.
The MEP began at 6:01 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 22, and continues through 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 25.
While the primary focus of the MEP is on speed enforcement, CHP officers will also be vigilant for impaired drivers.
Throughout this period, all available officers will be deployed on the roadways, intensifying enforcement efforts, and assisting motorists.
"As we celebrate the joy of the season, let's make a collective commitment to prioritize safety on our roads,” said CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee. “Your loved ones are waiting for you at home — buckle up, drive responsibly, and have a plan that includes a safe, sober ride before you head out for the evening.”
The annual surge in holiday travel brings with it an increased risk of crashes and alcohol-related incidents on our roadways.
Poor choices behind the wheel such as speeding, driving under the influence, or distracted driving can have tragic results.
During last year’s Christmas MEP, 26 people were killed in crashes within the CHP’s jurisdiction and nearly half of all the vehicle occupants killed were not wearing a seat belt.
Additionally, during last year’s Christmas MEP, CHP officers made 639 arrests for DUI — the equivalent of one arrest for DUI nearly every seven minutes throughout the holiday weekend.
Celebrate responsibly to help ensure everyone reaches their destination safely. Always designate a sober driver or use public transportation, rideshare services, or taxi.
The CHP encourages the public to call 9-1-1 to report impaired drivers, excessive speeding, and unsafe behavior on the roadways. The life you save could be your own.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Just in time for Christmas, Habitat for Humanity Lake County is celebrating the completion of its 40th home.
Jessica Hammes had a dream and a goal for herself, to own a home for herself and her sons by the time she reached 30.
However, as the years passed, she began to believe that goal would remain out of reach. Then she discovered Habitat for Humanity Lake County.
Working through the nearly yearlong process, Hammes and her boys learned so much about dedication to a project and community involvement.
Having moved into their home with plenty of time to make it their own for Christmas, they are now learning the joys of homeownership.
“The boys are so happy to finally have a yard to play in and space of their own,” Hammes said. “They are making friends in the neighborhood and talk about how much they love the house almost every day. They now have room to grow. I feel so thankful and blessed; the future is so bright for us now. We will be forever grateful to Habitat for everything they have done and for everything they have helped me accomplish.”
As Habitat for Humanity Lake County celebrates the completion of 40 homes in Lake County and looks ahead toward 2024 and the increasing challenges of assisting low-income families to become homeowners, as well as providing critical home repair services to qualified homeowners, they look to the community for ongoing support.
Habitat for Humanity Lake County is in need of buildable properties, wheelchair ramps and lifts for veterans and seniors, and funding to continue its housing mission.
If you or someone you know is interested in homeownership, requires repairs to your home, or would like to volunteer or donate, please call 707-994-1100, Extension 108, for more information. Your participation and support are immensely appreciated.
Tammy Brigham is administrator for Habitat for Humanity, Lake County.
As an American living in Britain in the 1990s, my first exposure to Christmas pudding was something of a shock. I had expected figs or plums, as in the “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” carol, but there were none. Neither did it resemble the cold custard-style dessert that Americans typically call pudding.
Instead, I was greeted with a boiled mass of suet – a raw, hard animal fat this is often replaced with a vegetarian alternative – as well as flour and dried fruits that is often soaked in alcohol and set alight.
It’s in no danger of breaking into my top ten favorite Christmas foods. But as a historian of Great Britain and its empire, I can appreciate the Christmas pudding for its rich global history. After all, it is a legacy of the British Empire with ingredients from around the globe it once dominated and continues to be enjoyed in places it once ruled.
Christmas pudding takes its shape
Christmas pudding is a relatively recent concoction of two older, at least medieval, dishes. The first was a runny porridge known as “plum pottage” in which any mixture of meats, dried fruits and spices might appear – edibles that could be preserved until the winter celebration.
Until the 18th century, “plum” was synonymous with raisins, currants and other dried fruits. “Figgy pudding,” immortalized in the “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” carol, appeared in the written record by the 14th century. A mixture of sweet and savory ingredients, and not necessarily containing figs, it was bagged with flour and suet and cooked by steaming. The result was a firmer, rounded hot mass.
During the 18th century, the two crossed to become the more familiar plum pudding – a steamed pudding packed with the ingredients of the rapidly growing British Empire of rule and trade. The key was less a new form of cookery than the availability of once-luxury ingredients, including French brandy, raisins from the Mediterranean, and citrus from the Caribbean.
Few things had become more affordable than cane sugar which, owing to the labors of millions of enslaved Africans, could be found in the poorest and remotest of British households by mid-century. Cheap sugar, combined with wider availability of other sweet ingredients like citrus and dried fruits, made plum pudding an iconically British celebratory treat, albeit not yet exclusively associated with Christmas.
Such was its popularity that English satirist James Gillray made it the centerpiece of one of his famous cartoons, depicting Napoleon Bonaparte and the British prime minister carving the world in pudding form.
In his 1843 internationally celebrated “A Christmas Carol,” Charles Dickens venerated the dish as the idealized center of any family’s Christmas feast: “Mrs Cratchit entered – flushed, but smiling proudly – with the pudding, like a speckled cannon-ball, so hard and firm, blazing in half of half-a-quarter of ignited brandy, and bedight with Christmas holly stuck into the top.”
Christmas pudding owed much of its lasting appeal to its socioeconomic accessibility. Victoria’s recipe, which became a classic, included candied citrus peel, nutmeg, cinnamon, lemons, cloves, brandy and a small mountain of raisins and currants – all affordable treats for the middle class. Those with less means could either opt for lesser amounts or substitutions, such as brandy for ale.
Eliza Acton, a leading cookbook author of the day who helped to rebrand plum pudding as Christmas pudding, offered a particularly frugal recipe that relied on potatoes and carrots.
White colonists’ desires to replicate British culture meant that versions of Christmas pudding soon appeared across the empire. Even European diggers in Austrialia’s goldfields included it in their celebrations by mid-century.
In the 1920s, the British Women’s Patriotic League heavily promoted it – calling it “Empire Pudding” in a global marketing campaign. They praised it as emblem of the empire that should be made from the ingredients of Britain’s colonies and possessions: dried fruits from Australia and South Africa, cinnamon from Ceylon, spices from India and Jamaican rum in place of French brandy.
Such promotional recipes and the mass production of puddings from iconic grocery stores like Sainsbury’s in the 1920s combined to place Christmas puddings on the tables of a myriad of peoples who resided across an empire on which the sun never set.
After the empire
Decolonization did not diminish the appeal of the Christmas pudding. Passengers transiting through London’s airports can find them in abundance this time of year. Their shape and density have baffled airport security scanners for some time, leading to requests to carry them as hand luggage.
In former white settler colonies, like Canada, the tradition endured, although in Australia, where Christmas falls in summer, trifle and pavlova are at least equally common. In parts of India, where it is sometimes known as “pudim,” it remains a traditional favorite, “steeped in tradition,” according to the leading English national daily newspaper, the “Hindustan Times.”
Reflecting modern palates and trends, Jamie Oliver, the celebrated British chef and author, has gluten-free and more modern options this year. His “classic” recipe, however, would not have been out of place on Queen Victoria’s table.
Like so many adaptations around the former empire, it includes some American ingredients: pecans and cranberries as well as bourbon substituted for brandy – an Anglo-American concoction – much like my own family. And I will embrace this one.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — Clearlake Animal Control has many dogs waiting for new homes at Christmas.
The Clearlake Animal Control website lists 34 adoptable dogs.
The adoptable dogs include “Brutus,” a male American pit bull terrier mix with a short white coat. He has been neutered.
There also is “Ninja,” a 1-year-old male pit bull terrier mix with a black and white coat. He’s also neutered.
The shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
For more information, call the shelter at 707-762-6227, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or on the city’s website.
This week’s adoptable dogs are featured below.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
As the holiday season approaches, Cal Fire extends a crucial reminder to our community, emphasizing the importance of safety.
Festive celebrations, flickering lights and winter greens are hallmarks of the holiday season, but they also present fire risks that can quickly turn this joyous time of year into a devastating one.
In the spirit of joy and celebration, it is paramount to ensure that our gatherings are not only enjoyable but also safeguarded, by adopting safety practices to minimize the risk of accidents and injuries.
Across the nation, nearly 47,000 fires occur during the winter holidays claiming more than 500 lives, 2,200 injuries and costing over $500 million in property damage, per the American Red Cross.
“This holiday season is meant to bring joy to family and friends,” said State Fire Marshal Daniel Berlant. “By adhering to some straightforward safety guidelines, you can reduce the likelihood of accidents and enjoy a safe holiday celebration.”
Here are a few safety tips for the holiday season:
• When incorporating candles into your holiday décor, remember to place them in open areas, at least three feet away from any flammable decorations. Extinguish candles before leaving a room and keep them out of reach of children and pets.
• In the kitchen, where the heart of holiday cooking resides, stay vigilant and avoid distractions. Unattended cooking is a leading cause of home fires, so it's crucial to keep potentially flammable items away from cooking surfaces. Additionally, always check the oven before turning it on and be prepared with a fire extinguisher in case of a fire.
• For those decorating this holiday season, prioritize safety by keeping the tree hydrated with daily watering. Check lights for damage, and position the tree away from exits, fireplaces, and other heat sources. Promptly remove decorations after the holiday season to minimize fire risks.
• When dealing with electrical components, repair or replace worn outlets, cords, and appliances immediately. Use surge protectors for lights to prevent overloads and follow safe practices with extension cords. Unplug lights before going to bed or leaving the house.
Visit www.fire.ca.gov for more ways you can keep your holidays merry and bright.