Don’t let smoking be a fire hazard
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Vaughan Fire and Rescue Service provides safety tips for disposing of cigarettes and cigars
Fire hazards can be anywhere – even when smoking in your own backyard. The City of Vaughan urges everyone to keep fire safety top of mind this summer, especially when using cigarettes or cigars.
Fire hazards can be anywhere – even when smoking in your own backyard. The City of Vaughan urges everyone to keep fire safety top of mind this summer, especially when using cigarettes or cigars.
Remember these essential fire prevention tips:
- Extinguish every cigarette or cigar fully – dispose of cigarettes in a proper ashtray that won’t tip or burn.
- Never empty the contents of an ashtray into garbage bins – this can cause a fire. Place a drop of water in the ashtray, then leave it to cool down fully.
- Never put cigarettes out in potted plants – moss, shredded wood or fertilizer found in soil can catch fire. Make sure potted plants are watered regularly and planted in clay pots to avoid fires.
- Never smoke around combustible materials, such as fences and trees.
- Never smoke in bed – falling asleep and setting the bed on fire is a possibility.
- Be extra cautious when smoking while drinking alcohol or taking medication.
For more safety and fire prevention tips to protect yourself, your family and the community, visit vaughan.ca/fire.
Cigarette and cigar litter
Do your part in keeping Vaughan clean and free of cigarette and cigar butt litter on streets, roadways and in parks. Do not flick the butts on the ground or out of your vehicle window while driving. If smoking at a high-rise building, ensure you extinguish all cigarette or cigar butts in a secure ashtray, away from where they can blow away or fall on below balconies. Carry a pocket ashtray to safely extinguish and store the butts if you are in public with no ashtray nearby. Once fully extinguished and cooled, place them in the garbage.
For the safety and well-being of everyone in the community, including front-line staff, littering and illegal dumping are prohibited under the Littering and Dumping By-law 103-2020 (PDF). If you see an instance of illegal dumping or litter, please report it to Access Vaughan at 905-832-2281 or accessvaughan@vaughan.ca. Individuals found dumping their household garbage are subject to a maximum fine of $5,000 per offence.
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