Flamethrower used to kill cockroaches sparks Centralia fire

Published 1:30 am Monday, August 8, 2016

Associated Press

CENTRALIA — Fire officials in Centralia say a resident sparked a small fire in an apartment while trying to kill cockroaches with a homemade flamethrower.

KOMO-TV reported that fire crews were called to the apartment on Monday morning after receiving a report of a commercial structure fire.

By the time firefighters arrived, the resident had extinguished the flames. No one was injured.

A preliminary investigation found that the resident was using bug spray and a lighter to create a flamethrower for killing cockroaches. That sparked the fire.

It’s not clear whether any cockroaches were actually killed in the process.