Fire-Safe Cigarettes Will Prevent Fires

HONOLULU -- The Honolulu Fire Department said it is already looking forward to next year, when a new law kicks in aimed to making cigarettes less likely to start fires.
KITV's Shayne Enright reported that a home in Kapolei was destroyed last year by a cigarette thrown in the trash.
One person was injured and a family was left without a home.
The HFD said it hopes to avoid incidences like that when the new law is enacted.
"Actually, what we want to do is put ourselves out of business if we can prevent a fire. Not only do we help the community, but we also help the responders," said HFD Chief Kenneth Silva.
The new cigarettes have bands of paper that have a higher density, and if a cigarette is left unattended, it will self-extinguish, Enright said.
Lawmakers said cigarette manufactures support the safety measure, and smokers shouldn't expect to pay higher costs, they said.
"When the fires came through, it shut down our only highway that we have, stranding tons of visitors and residents who couldn't get to the airport," said Rep. Angus McKelvey. "The thing grew out of control so fast, and a lot of it could have been prevented."
A large brushfire last year in Lahaina prompted Maui officials to take action.
Some smokers said fire-safe cigarettes will prevent fires from starting.
"Normally I try to avoid smoking in the bedroom and places like that, and you try to keep an eye on it. It could be potential danger -- you never know what happens," smoker Bart Van Kerkhove.
The special cigarettes show up on store shelves in September 2009, Enright said.