Recently, in Puqi Town, Leqing, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, a man casually discarded a cigarette butt, which ignited the entire factory building, causing property damage of over 2.12 million Chinese Yuan. The man involved in this incident has now been placed under investigation.
According to reports from mainland media on May 9th, a fire broke out in a factory building in Puqi Town, Leqing, Wenzhou, destroying the factory building, production equipment, and materials, resulting in direct property losses exceeding 2.12 million Yuan. Fortunately, no casualties were reported.
After investigation, it was found that the cause of the fire was an improperly extinguished cigarette butt igniting the surrounding combustible materials.
Surveillance footage from the scene captured a man riding an electric tricycle to the factory to purchase goods. After picking up the goods outside the factory, he casually tossed the used cigarette butt by the roadside. A few minutes later, the pile of plastic pipes was ignited, emitting black smoke. By the time passersby noticed, the fire had spread uncontrollably, engulfing the entire factory building and causing a disaster.
The man involved in the incident has been arrested and is under investigation for suspected arson.
On May 10th, this incident trended on several Chinese social media platforms, sparking discussions among netizens:
“Smokers must ensure their cigarette butts are properly extinguished, otherwise it’s extremely irresponsible.”
“When I used to smoke, I always made sure to properly put out the cigarette, no matter where…”
“The smoking man is primarily responsible, but is the charge of arson really suitable? It was not a deliberate act.”
“Smokers not only casually litter cigarette butts, destroying others’ property but also expose others to secondhand smoke, causing many cancer cases in recent years! Some of them are family members and friends, and there are still households with children who smoke.”
“Not extinguishing cigarette butts before discarding them?! If it happens in autumn with dry grass in the mountains, it could lead to a forest fire!”
In fact, the above-mentioned cases are not isolated incidents. On March 1, 2024, a fire broke out in a residential area in Haidian District, Beijing. The fire was caused by a cigarette butt, as a resident named Li was smoking on the balcony and discarded the cigarette butt, igniting the surrounding cardboard boxes and flammable debris, leading to a disaster. Li was criminally detained after the incident.
On March 20, 2024, in Shangcheng District, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, a resident named Qiu on the 12th floor threw unextinguished cigarette butts from the high-rise window 11 times, igniting paper products on a three-wheeled vehicle on the ground floor, resulting in vehicle damage. Qiu was administratively detained for 10 days following the incident.