Firefighters are asking neighbors begin taking down their live Christmas trees -- to help keep fire risk lower.
They held a demonstration on Friday - showing how fast fires can spread.
“We only have to be out of the room for a second, and the tree has such a high heat release rate we're concerned before we can actually get on top of the tree and extinguish it,” says John Beck, Fire Marshal, Reno Fire Department.
Dry Christmas trees and incandescent lights can cause fires as they're being taken down.
Officials say the longer a Christmas tree is left up, the drier it gets and the more likely it will catch fire and most tree fires are after the new year begins because of that.
Those older incandescent lights put off enough heat that they can spark a fire after being used for many years -- so getting them down is equally as important.
Keep Truckee Meadows Beautiful is recycling Christmas Trees through January 11th.
They're out at Bartley Ranch Park, the Reno Sports Complex and the Shadow Mountain Sports Complex in Sparks.
They ask you remove all lights and ornaments ahead of time and bring a $5 donation to help cover program costs.
You can also recycle Christmas lights at Greater Nevada Credit Union locations in Reno and Sparks through January 11th, as well.
