SPOKANE VALLEY — A cigarette that appears extinguished may still pose a serious fire threat, according to the Spokane Valley Fire Department.
Over the past two months, investigators have determined that five fires were caused by improperly discarded smoking materials. Two recent incidents involved cigarettes placed in potted plants at apartment complexes, where they smoldered beneath the soil before igniting.
On Aug. 3, tenants discovered a fire that started after a cigarette was discarded into a planter on a lower-level balcony on East Appleway. The following day, firefighters responded to another apartment fire on East Cataldo, where a discarded cigarette had ignited a flowerpot on a second-floor balcony.
“A cigarette may appear out, but the heat can continue smoldering inside the pot until it ignites nearby combustible materials,” said Ben Reece, assistant fire marshal with the Spokane Valley Fire Department. “Always use a proper, noncombustible ashtray when discarding smoking material.”
Potting soil can insulate heat from a smoldering cigarette, allowing it to continue burning beneath the surface and eventually ignite nearby materials.
Fire officials stress that flowerpots, planters and other soil-filled containers should never be used as ashtrays.
Instead, smokers should use designated, noncombustible ashtrays and ensure cigarettes are completely extinguished before disposal.
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