Smoking on balcony suspected cause of Surrey apartment fire

Balcony smoking is the suspected cause of a four-alarm fire that gutted a Surrey, B.C., apartment forcing 100 people to evacuate their homes on Saturday night.

Surrey's Assistant Fire Chief Steve Robinson said the fire is the latest in a series in the city over the past few years that caused major damage because flames went undetected.

"Somebody has to smell it, see it, hear it. The building's detection systems are bypassed because it starts on the outside of the building," said Robinson.

He points to the lack on prevention systems on balconies and outside walls of B.C. buildings, calling on the province to require multi-unit buildings have exterior fire detectors and sprinkler systems.

Fires that spark on the outside of a building take longer to be noticed and cause up to 2.4 times more damage, he added.

Investigation ongoing

The fire that gutted The Celeste apartment building on 121a Street sparked on a second-floor balcony, but so far fire officials can't find any obvious cause.

They suspect the cause was a burning or smoldering cigarette butt.

"There was nothing else to give us an indication. There was no electrical on the outside, the barbecue was in the off position, so that doesn't leave us with a lot else," said Robinson.

• 4-alarm apartment fire displaces Surrey residents
• Apartment fire leaves Surrey residents awaiting answers

The investigation into the blaze is ongoing.

Robinson urges anybody smoking outside a building to douse their butts in a safe way:

• Use a pop can half-full of water.
• Put a bucket full of sand where smokers gather.
• Never butt a cigarette in a plant pot as peat moss can smolder and ignite later.