Homemade flamethrower used to kill cockroaches sparks apartment fire in Centralia


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

Fire crews were called to the apartment 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, firefighters said.

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.
