Cigarette causes mobile home fire

A discarded cigarette was the cause of a fire that left a single wide mobile home completely destroyed in Post Falls on Friday, according to a Kootenai County Fire and Rescue spokesperson.

Only one home on East Seltice Way in the Hidden Hills mobile home park was affected by the fire that occurred around 2 p.m., said Shaena Dunn with the department.

Owner Jim Houk, who lived alone there, had reported that a still burning cigarette had lit a mattress on fire, Dunn said.

"He went to the bathroom and when he came out he saw the mattress was on fire and left," she said.

Houk was not injured, but the fire devastated his home.

"He lost everything," Dunn said.

Holiday Inn Express in Coeur d'Alene provided Houk with a complimentary room on Friday night, she said. American Red Cross is continuing to assist him, she added.

Dunn couldn't provide the exact address of the mobile home on Saturday.