Real World Examples of Balcony Fires Caused by Cigarettes 3

Stoptober is a chance to help people change their smoking habits, and as more people manage to quit smoking, the risk of fires on balconies from smoking will be reduced and balcony living will become more fire safe.

Here are some incidents of balcony fires that took place in 2019 and 2018.

Isle of Dogs – July 2019

In July 2019, there was a balcony fire on the 13th floor of a tower block in the Isle of Dogs. This blaze prompted 67 calls to 999, taking crews from six different stations. This fire was believed to have been cause by the unsafe disposal of smoking materials.

Harold Wood – September 2019

Eight crews from Harold Hill, Hornchurch and Romford and a total of 60 firefighters were called out to a fire that occurred on a balcony of a four-storey block of flats. Investigators were quick to find that the cause of the fire was down to careless disposal of cigarettes. Thankfully, there were no reports of any injuries.

West Hampstead – July 2018

On the third floor of a seven-storey apartment block, a fire broke out on the balcony, which quickly spread to the external balconies above from the fourth to sixth floor. Eight fire engines and 58 firefighters attended this scene after the control room received more than 40 calls regarding the fire. This blaze was also down to the careless disposal of a cigarette.

To find out more information about fires on balconies, please visit the AliDeck Balcony Fires Report 2017 – 2020.