Woman issues Christmas warning after Elf on a Shelf prank nearly burned down her home

A woman has issued a severe warning after her husband's Elf on the Shelf prank went terribly wrong.

The woman, who goes by the name @maddieeeee311, reposted her viral TikTok from last year, which showed the Elf's face melting after falling onto a light bulb while sitting on a chandelier.

"Reuploading my elf on the shelf video for you guys in case you need any ideas this year," the woman wrote in her caption

The original post was viewed over 44 million times and showed the dangers of carelessly leaving an Elf on the Shelf toy near electricity.

The woman initially wrote in her caption: "At least it didn't start a fire."

The video left many stunned, as one person wrote: "Burning the house down is the ultimate elf on the shelf naughty deed."

Another said: "This happened to our elf!! My parents hid him for a few days and returned him with a Toy Story bandaid & said he went to the elf doctor."

A third joked: "Karma on the shelf. He deserved it."

While another commented: "We did this and the legs melted to the light. It’s a wonder our house didn’t catch fire."

However, it's not just these toys we must be wary of during the silly season.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) previously shared a viral video showing how dangerous a real Christmas tree can be if left unwatered.

In the video, the CPSC created a living room for the experiment, and, as the clip shows, the tree is fully engulfed by flames within seconds.

After 23 seconds, the fire spread to the nearby couch and presents under the tree.

The CPSC added that around 100 fires were caused by Christmas trees in the US from 2014 to 2016.

A statement said: "From 2014 to 2016, there were about 100 Christmas tree fires and about 1,100 candle fires that resulted in 10 deaths, 150 injuries, and nearly $50 million (£38.4m) in property damage each of those years.

"Make sure your live Christmas tree stays well-watered throughout the holiday season.

"If you're buying an artificial tree, look for the 'Fire Resistant' label.

"Put lit candles where you can easily see them and away from flammable items like curtains. Blow candles out before leaving a room."

Be careful, folks!