A Christmas Tradition That Should be Extinguished

Imagine it. You own a 3600-square-foot luxury home in Newport Beach, California, south of Los Angeles. But, truth be told, you can't bear to have the neighbors over for dinner, because the place really looks like a dump compared to the other homes in the neighborhood. So you remodel. Finally, your house is a home!

You'll be enjoying your home for years to come, right? Well, not for one Newport Beach family. It seems that they decided to decorate their Christmas tree with candles, which ignited the tree. The resulting blaze caused 2.3 million dollars in damage to the home.

The family was following a Scandinavian tradition by placing lighted candles on the tree, said Newport Beach fire chief Paul Matheis. This is one of those traditions that's not worth preserving. Look at the following video to see how quickly a Christmas tree fire can destroy your home.