CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- According to the U.S. Fire Administration, fires occurring during the holiday season injure approximately 2,600 individuals and cause over $930 million in damage across the nation annually.

The Camp Pendleton Fire and Emergency Services is offering holiday safety tips to ensure service members and families have safe and cheerful holiday season.

Tips for selecting a fresh tree:

• Needles on fresh trees should be green and hard to pull off of the branches
• Needles should not break or crumble
• The trunk should be sticky

Tips for caring for your tree:

• Do not place your tree close to a heat source, including a fireplace, candles or heat vent
• Be careful not to drop or flick cigarette ashes near a tree
• Do not leave the tree up for longer than two weeks
• Keep the tree stand filled with water at all times

Avoid allowing the tree to dry out because a tree fire can engulf an entire room in less than 45 seconds.

Maintaining your holiday lights:

• Inspect lights for frayed wires, bare spots, gaps in the insulation, broken or cracked sockets and excessive kinking or wear before putting them up
• Do not overload electrical outlets
• Do not link more than three light strands
• Connect strings of lights to an extension cord before plugging the cord into the outlet
• Periodically check the wires; they should not be warm to the touch
• Do not leave holiday lights on unattended

Camp Pendleton Fire and Emergency Services encourages using extra caution when decorating Christmas trees, unwrapping gifts, cooking, using candles and highly recommends testing smoke detectors.

Camp Pendleton Fire and Emergency Services wish Pendleton a happy and safe holiday season.