CHRISTMAS LIGHTS SPARK DEADLY FIRE.

Byline: Lisa Van Proyen Daily News Staff Writer

Linda ``Dede'' Sartor loved the Christmas season so much that she covered her house inside and out with thousands of lights, even though she knew they overloaded the electrical circuits.

She was driven to string more lights every year on her animal-shape shrubs and immaculately kept yard because she knew they brought such joy to her neighbors in the 8000 block of Masefield Court, friends and family said.

On Friday, the lighting display led to Sartor's death when an electrical short sparked a fire on one of her three artificial Christmas trees, according to firefighters.

``All she wanted to do was make this place a happy place for herself and everyone she knew,'' said a neighbor, Nancy Bernard. ``What she loved the most is probably what caused her death.''

Shortly before dawn, firefighters found 50-year-old property manager Sartor dead on her family room floor, a few feet away from the burning tree and about six feet away from a sliding glass door that led to her back yard.

``The metal pole, all the wire and burned lights were at the base. The fabric of the tree was disintegrated,'' said Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Steve Ruda.

Her family and friends had warned her that the lights were dangerous and could set a tree on fire.

``I've been telling her about the extension cords and that she ought to be careful - maybe you're overloading them,'' said Joe Mussi, a close family friend. ``She'd say, I got a lot of amps - and I've checked them.''

``I told her, God, it's a tragedy that this holiday season so many people have died because of the Christmas tree fires,'' said neighbor Anna Fascano.

Still, each year Sartor insisted on putting up more and more strands of lights, often hiring an electrician to assure that her holiday display could handle the load, friends said Friday.

She even altered her schedule around the holidays, blow-drying her hair in the morning, rather than at night to avoid blowing circuits and interrupting her elaborate light display.

Sartor also had a smoke alarm connected to a 24-hour security company that received first alert of the fire and notified fire officials, who responded to the blaze within five minutes, Ruda said.

It was too late.

When the smoke alarm was activated, Sartor was in a back room, where family said she frequently fell asleep. A quarter-cup of coffee sat in the room, with her reading glasses placed nearby, Ruda said.

She probably went to investigate the fire and got overcome by the smoke, fire officials said.

Fumes got to her

The fumes from the tree, carpeting, wallpaper and the myriad of collectibles inside could have caused her to become unconscious, Ruda said. ``It doesn't take much to be consumed by one breath of toxic smoke,'' he added.

Some neighbors believe she was earnestly trying to save her home.

``She wouldn't have been one to run out. She probably tried to save her stuff,'' Fascano said.

She had never married and had no children. But some of her neighbors were like sisters, as they'd frequently go home to home hosting parties, neighbors said. Sartor's home of 13 years and flower-filled garden were her life when she wasn't working for her family-owned property management company based in Encino, friends said.

But at 4:18 a.m. Friday, her home went up in smoke and fire. Arson investigators blame it on an electrical short in lights on one of three indoor artificial Christmas trees she had inside her cul-de-sac home, Ruda said.

Flames spread only to her kitchen and family room, but the smoke was so thick that it reached throughout the three-bedroom, one-story home, Ruda said.

$100,000 loss

Twenty-five firefighters extinguished the blaze within 22 minutes. There was a loss of $100,000 to the structure and contents, said Jim Wells, a spokesman for the Fire Department.

Arson investigators could not immediately determine whether her lights had been left on overnight or whether it was a slow, smoldering fire after the lights were turned off.

Neighbor Jean Zoida said the house was dark at 10:30 p.m. Thursday. She and other neighbors said Sartor occasionally left them on overnight, probably because she routinely slept only a few hours each night.

``Oh my God, I just can't believe it. Everybody on the block loved her,'' Zoida said.

Sartor would begin putting up her extensive displays in October and leave them up until the end of January or early February, neighbors said.

``Whenever you needed Dede, she was always there. She would do anything for you,'' Zoida said.

Flag at half-staff

As one neighbor lowered her American flag to half-staff in Sartor's honor, a dozen residents who had gathered in front of her home late Friday morning said it will take time for Sartor's death to sink in.

Bernard will miss her thoughtful ways, including how Sartor routinely picked up her Sunday newspaper from the sidewalk, gently placing it at her front door.

A circle of neighbors will miss their twice-a-month gatherings that Sartor encouraged in order to play a card game of Pan over dessert and coffee.

``She's going to keep the card game going. Now, we have to keep it up in her honor. Because if we didn't, she'd make us,'' Fascano said, as Sartor's sister, Elena Guglielmi, clenched a doll that her sister had made by hand.

Most of all, they will miss Sartor's warm presence in her front yard gardening.

``This weekend, she's going to be out here gardening,'' Bernard said in her shocked disbelief. ``It's a tremendous tragedy in this neighborhood.''

USING YOUR SMOKE ALARM

Smoke alarms can save lives, but only if they are used appropriately, according to firefighters.

BEFORE THE ALARM:

Sleep with the doors closed. Keep a flashlight, shoes and a whistle near your bed.

If you live on the second floor or higher, keep an escape ladder near a window and practice using it.

Keep an all-purpose fire extinguisher at home and read the instructions on its usage.

Plan an escape route with the family ahead of time and organize a common meeting place so that one of you does not mistakenly go back inside to try to rescue someone.

AFTER YOU HEAR THE ALARM:

Crawl to the door and feel it with the back of your hand to see whether it is hot, indicating fire on the other side. It's important to stay low because smoke rises.

If no heat is felt, crack open the door, stay low and go into the hallway. If smoke is in the hallway, go back into the room and close the door. Pile towels or clothing - preferably wet - near the crack at the door's bottom.

If necessary, barricade yourself in blankets.

If you cannot escape, give the univeral sign for help by hanging anything white out your window and yell for assistance.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Fire Department

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos, Box, Map

PHOTO (1--Color) SARTOR

(2) Elena Guglielmi collects items that belonged to her sister, Linda ``Dede'' Sartor, who died in a fire at her West Hills home Friday.

Myung J. Chun/Daily News

BOX: USING YOUR SMOKE ALARM (see text)

MAP: Fatal fire in West Hills