This East County mobile home suffered heavy heat and smoke damage from a fire that started near a natural Christmas tree Monday afternoon. The mother and child escaped injury.
Updated: 12.08.09
NEW CANEY – A natural Christmas tree was deemed the cause of a fire Monday afternoon at an East Montgomery County home.
New Caney, Splendora and Porter firefighters responded to a fire at 22195 Betty Lane in the White Oaks Estates subdivision at 1:15 p.m., according to the Montgomery County Fire Marshal’s Office.
Firefighters were able to contain the fire in quick fashion but not before smoke and heat damaged much of the mobile home and its contents.
A 29-year-old mother and her 19-month-old child were not injured, County Fire Marshal Jimmy Williams said.
Fire Marshal’s Investigator Roland Morgan determined the fire started in the homeowner’s Christmas tree, which had been in place for a few days. Although these types of fires are not common, they can be deadly under the right conditions, Williams said.
“We have a lot of seasonal fires due to the holiday decorations, and the cold weather conditions,” he said. “We were real fortunate this fire occurred during the day, so no one was injured. It could have been much worse if they had been asleep at night.”
Williams said there were no smoke detectors in the home.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 250 home fires annually that started with Christmas trees per year from 2003-07. Those fires caused an average of 14 deaths, 26 injuries and $13.8 million in direct property damage annually.
On average, one in every 18 reported fires that started with a Christmas tree resulted in death, according to
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