Firefighters in Jefferson County had a hectic 24 hours over the weekend, as crews responded to about a dozen mulch and grass fires.
"That's a mixture of greenery on the side of the roads, mulch upside of buildings and 80 percent of them are from cigarettes, just people flicking out their cigarette butts," Jefferson County Fire spokesman Jordan Yuodis said.
A discarded cigarette is to blame for a massive fire early Saturday, prompting the evacuation of 200 guests at an Indianapolis hotel. Yuodis said he has seen it before.
A cigarette thrown in mulch was blamed for burning down a local Perkins in 2007. Just a few years ago, it was the same scenario that nearly burned an Elizabethtown McDonald's to the ground.