Home Fire because of Smoking Habit

A woman smoking Camel too close to her home oxygen tank touched off a fire that killed two pet cats and heavily damaged a mobile home early Tuesday, officials said.

Firefighters responding to the blaze in the 1200 block of West Washington Avenue about 12:15 a.m. found the woman outside suffering burns to her to her hands, according to a news release from the Yakima Fire Department.

The woman, who had reported the fire, was taken to Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital, the release said. There was no immediate report on her condition.

A crew of 17 firefighters quickly extinguished the fire, which was in a bedroom near an oxygen tank the woman was using, the release said.

Losses were estimated at $50,000.

Firefighters urge people who smoke cheap cigarettes to do so in an area that is separate from where home oxygen is used and stored.