Home fire risk higher in December

December is usually a time of celebration, but it can also a hazardous one when it comes to the risk of home fires.

According to State Farm Insurance, the month of December is the number one month for home fire claims. Spokesman Dave Phillips says their research shows one in three home fires and fatal home fires occur in December, January and February.

Right now the risk is bad decorative lighting connections and cooking fires.

"When you get into January, that's when you start to see the fireplace fires, the alternative heating sources coming into play," Phillips said.

The U.S. Fire Administration reports that approximately 390 home fires and 21 deaths occur annually because of Christmas trees or overloaded holiday light connections. Phillips also says there is a lot of risk from the increased amount of cooking going on in many kitchens, especially with an increase in the number of cooks or relatives who may be toiling around each other preparing holiday food.

According to Phillips, another big source of holiday fire hazards in the home is the overuse of decorative candles, especially when residents leave them burning because they fall asleep or forget to extinguish the candles. The USFA says another fire hazard right now is allowing a natural Christmas tree to become dried out.

"One of the best things that you can do to help prevent that is just to make sure your smoke detectors are working and make sure you have a fire extinguisher," he said.

A heat source too close to a tree causes about one in every six Christmas tree fires, according to the U.S. Fire Administration.

State Farm says in the year 2013, December was the number one month for home fire claims, with close to 4,500 for the month. Number two was January, with more than 4,100 claims.