Safety Tips From the City of Pasadena for Joyful Holidays

Old Pasadena (File Photo – Old Pasadena Management District)

Officials at the City of Pasadena remind residents, and visitors, to prioritize safety during holiday festivities.

By News Desk

Under the overarching theme, “Don’t let a Grinch steal your holiday cheer,” Police, Fire, Water and Power, Public Health, and Information Technology Departments shared valuable tips with the community to ensure a safe and joyful celebration for all.

– Police

Shopping in Pasadena (Photo – Staff).

The Pasadena Police Department emphasized seven safe shopping habits and home security measures to protect residents from potential thefts and scams during the holiday rush:

1. Be aware of your surroundings while shopping.
2. Keep valuables out of sight when leaving them in vehicles.
3. Monitor deliveries, using delivery lockers or trusted neighbors for pick-ups.
4. Stay vigilant against online scammers, particularly those using phishing emails to gain access to private information.
5. If you plan to travel, secure your home by locking all doors and windows.
6. Use timers for lights to give the appearance that someone is home.
7. Avoid sharing travel plans on social media to prevent potential burglaries.

– Fire, Water and Power, and Public Works

Old Pasadena (File Photo – Ken Lund)

Pasadena Fire Department, Water and Power, and Public Works Departments focused on fire prevention safety, offering guidance to safeguard homes from potential fire hazards associated with holiday decorations:

• Keep candles at least 12 inches away from flammable materials, ensuring they are in stable holders.
• Consider using battery-operated flameless candles for a safer alternative.
• Inspect holiday lights annually, discarding strands with frayed or pinched wires.
• Follow manufacturer’s instructions for connecting light strands.
• Natural or resin-bearing cut trees must be treated with a flame-retardant solution or process approved by the State Fire Marshal.
• The support device that holds the tree in an upright position shall be of a type that is stable, secure, and of adequate size to avoid tipping over.
• Water Christmas trees daily to prevent them from drying out and becoming fire hazards.
• Place trees at least 3 feet away from heat sources and ensure they do not block exits.
• Check the Public Works website for tree recycling schedules of curbside and drop-off locations.

– Health

L.A. County Health Department encourages residents to plan and prepare for this winter’s respiratory virus season (Photo – Andrea Piacquadio)

Pasadena Public Health Department urged everyone to take precautions to stay safe and healthy this holiday season:

• Test for COVID-19 before, and 2 days after, traveling or attending gatherings.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water.
• Cook foods to appropriate temperatures, and keep dishes heated or chilled as advised by the S. Food and Drug Administration.
• Avoid cross-contamination of foods to prevent spread of germs.
• Stay home if you feel sick or have been exposed to COVID-19.

– IT

Internet Access (Photo – ColoradoBlvd.net)

Pasadena Information Technology Department shared seven online security tips to help reduce the likelihood of residents’ information falling into the wrong hands:

1. Avoid using Public Wi-Fi for any type of financial transactions, including shopping, or accessing any site that requires you to login. While using public Wi-Fi is convenient, it is not secure.
2. Only visit sites that are well-known, legitimate, and reputable businesses, and which uses secure communications. Secure communications to a site will show a “lock” (padlock symbol) in the URL bar and the URL address starts with “HTTPS”. However, secure communications only means the data sent between your browser and the site it encrypted. It does not mean the site itself is secure in how they handle your data, protect your private information, or safeguard your payment information.
3. Be cautious of offers that look too good to be true. Remember the axiom: if it looks too good to be true it probably isn’t true.
4. Resist the urge to open emails right away or click links in emails. Rather than click the link for the alleged deal from the superstore, manually type the superstore’s site address into your browser’s address bar.
5. Always check from where the email originated. Your bank will not send you emails from 588389a0rw4cdca-349848ad@lrkulaoed.onmicrosoft.com.
6. Use strong and secure passwords. Use a unique password for every site. Use a password manager to autogenerate and fill passwords.
7. For any site to which you login, setup multifactor authentication if it supports it. This is one of the most secure ways you can protect yourself and your account from being compromised.

By being proactive in these practices, residents can collectively ensure a festive season that is free from preventable accidents and incidents.