The planter is on fire

I was walking through my neighbourhood yesterday when I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, burning plastic and cinders falling into the shrubs next to a house. I took a few more steps, my brain not quite processing what I had seen. Then I turned around for a better look.

A planter on the second-floor balcony of a duplex was on fire.

I tried pounding on the door to get the attention of anyone inside. Meanwhile, another neighbour called the fire department, as we were both concerned the shrubs underneath would catch. Thankfully, the occupant eventually woke up and flung the planter off the balcony, giving us a nice little shower of dirt.

The picture doesn’t really do it justice. It was burning quite dramatically at the beginning!

I’ve never come across anything quite like this. There were no obvious sources of ignition nearby, so the most likely explanation is that someone tried using the planter as an ashtray, not realizing that butting out in organic material (e.g., peat moss) after a prolonged heat wave may not be wise.

Another reason not to smoke!