Reno firefighters say a discarded cigarette is to blame for starting a fire at a Lakeside Drive building late Saturday morning.
Investigators say the fire started on the third floor balcony from a “carelessly discarded cigarette” just before 11:15 a.m.
The fire caused moderate damage and was contained to the exterior balcony by fire crews.
No one was hurt in the incident.
Fire crews say smoking materials such as cigarettes, cigars, pipes, etc. are the leading cause of fire deaths in the United States.
Acting Fire Marshal Tray Palmer reports that, “In the last month alone, we have had four fires involving cigarettes. Two of these fires involved smoking with medical oxygen resulting in two burn injuries and one fatality.”
The National Fire Protection Association reports that the risk of dying in a home structure fire caused by smoking materials rises with age. One out of four fatal victims of smoking-material fires is not the smoker whose cigarette started the fire.
To reduce the threat of fire causes by smoking materials, the Reno Fire Department offers the following safety tips:
• If you smoke, smoke outside.
• Use deep, wide ashtrays on a sturdy table.
• Before you throw out butts and ashes, make sure they are out, and dousing in water or sand is the best way to do that.
• Check under furniture cushions and in other places people smoke for cigarette butts that may have fallen out of sight.
• Never smoke in a home where oxygen is being used.
• If you smoke, choose fire-safe cigarettes. They are less likely to cause fires.
• To prevent a deadly cigarette fire, you have to be alert. You won't be if you are sleepy, have been drinking, or have taken medicine or other drugs.
• Keep matches and lighters up high, out of children's sight and reach.
(Reno Fire Department contributed to this report.)
