Cigarette ignites fire at Aspen Park Apartments in west Wichita

A cigarette discarded into a pot of combustible materials ignited a fire that heavily damaged a west Wichita apartment building, authorities said.

The fire was reported shortly before 6:45 p.m. Wednesday at Aspen Park Apartments, 8405 W. Central, a Sedgwick County dispatch supervisor said. That’s southeast of Central and Tyler.

Fire crews arriving on the scene saw a balcony engulfed in flames, fire Capt. Stuart Bevis said. Fire spread into the attic space of the apartment building, but a “pretty aggressive attack” by crews contained the blaze and it was declared out just after 7:15 p.m.

It was the latest example of an apartment fire caused by careless smoking, Bevis said. No injuries were reported, but every resident of the building will need other quarters because of smoke and water damage.

“All the units in that building are going to be affected,” he said.

The fire caused an estimated $140,000 in damage to the building and its contents.

Smoking in apartment buildings – even on balconies – is “very dangerous” because of the threat to life and property to so many people, he said.

This story was originally published June 20, 2013 at 7:53 AM with the headline "Cigarette ignites fire at Aspen Park Apartments in west Wichita."