Fire investigators say Tuesday morning’s townhouse blaze in Ellerslie is yet another example of how dangerous putting out a cigarette in a planter or flower box can be.
“Following the investigation we’ve determined the fire was caused by improperly discarded smokers materials,” Edmonton Fire Rescue Service’s Maya Filipovic said.
“That ignited peat moss in a planter box, and then that fire eventually burned through the wood-frame box and ignited the vinyl house siding.”
Structural damage was pegged at $300,000 and $30,000 worth of property damage was caused. Some nearby structures also saw some damage.
Filipovic said peat in flower boxes are fuel for fires like this.
“With the flower pots or planters, they are not meant to be receptacles for cigarettes and they are combustible.” said Filipovic. “So we definitely want to remind Edmontonians to ‘Stub It Right‘ by only using a smoking materials receptacles designed for exterior use, and never using flower pots or planters to dispose of smoking material.”
Edmonton fire says since 2010, $52.5 million in damage was caused by smoking materials snuffed in planters or flower pots.