Fire in Vancouver that destroyed 3 houses caused by a cigarette

Firefighters say a carelessly discarded cigarette was the cause of a devastating fire in Vancouver’s Strathcona neighborhood earlier this month.

According to Vancouver Fire Rescue Services, the Oct. 7 fire destroyed three homes in the 1000 block of East Pender Street and killed 11 people.

A cigarette was dropped at the rear of a property, igniting combustible materials in the area that then spread to trees and neighboring homes, the department said in a social media post Wednesday, revealing what sparked the massive blaze.

“A reminder that smoking materials should only be placed in a metal container with water or sand,” the post reads. “Never step off balconies, in flowerpots, from cars or near vegetation.”

VFRS says smoking materials, including cigarettes, are the most common cause of fires in Vancouver and account for 59 per cent of all fires in 2023.