On December 22,199O at approximately 11:lO p.m. a Christmas tree fire originated in the family room of the Dell’Orco home. The father, in the family room at the time of the fire, made futile attempts to remove the burning tree from the house. The mother called the fire department and removed one child. They escaped, with injuries. She tried to reenter the home but could not because of heavy smoke and heat. The father abandoned the burning tree removal and attempted to rescue six of his children still in the home. The fire took the lives of the father and all six children. A Christmas tree fire can develop and spread throughout an entire home almost instantaneously. In this fire, the tree was dry, and overheated or defective lights provided the ignition source. This fire reached overwhelming proportions at lighting speed and left the family helpless to survive.