The Elf on the Shelf has become very popular across the world in recent years. The little toys, based on the book ‘The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition’, by Carol Aebersold and her daughter Chanda Bell, have become Christmas staples across countless homes.
The idea is that Santa’s little helper will observe children in the weeks leading up to Christmas in order to report back to Old Saint Nick himself whether the children have been ‘naughty’ or ‘nice’. The elf is moved to different spots in the home every night, often after the kids go to bed. By the time they wake up, the elf is watching them closely from a different area of the home.
As sweet as this concept is, firefighters are now warning parents everywhere to beware of the hidden danger behind these little elves.
Moving the elf around every day can admittedly get a little tedious for parents. It’s not always easy to come up with new, creative spots to put Santa’s little helper — who will also often be adorned or decorated in a cute, creative new ways.
But placing the Elf in an unsafe spot for too long proved nearly fatal for one Dublin, Ireland family: the Elf burned up after being placed on a lamp, nearly burning down their home.
The Dublin Fire Brigade shared a photo on Twitter of the scorched toy’s ‘behind’ warning the public to be extra cautious.
“Close one for this ElfOnAShelf after she ended up on a lamp,” they wrote. “The householder had done the right thing & purchased one with a CE mark. The Elf resisted heat for 40 minutes. Keep all decorations away from heat.”
It’s very important to remember to never place these little elves nor any other Christmas decoration near heat sources, such as lamps, lights, or candles.
Luckily for this family, the parents were still awake when the Elf caught fire, managing to avoid a full-fledged catastrophe. Nobody was hurt — well, except for the poor Elf, of course.
Please share this important warning with your family and friends to remind them to be extremely careful about where they place these little elves and any other Christmas decorations this holiday season. Cheers to a safe and joyous season to all!
