Daily London
Authorities believe a bushfire that threatened homes in Perth was accidentally started by a cigarette butt.
The blaze spread quickly in Ellenbrook about 3pm (6pm AEDT) yesterday, threatening homes and forcing residents to flee, before it was contained and downgraded more than seven hours later.
This morning, WA Police announced a $25,000 reward for information if it led to the conviction of an arsonist.
Investigating officers were appealing in case anyone had information that might help understand what caused the blaze.
DFES incident controller Tim McGrade later told media at the scene that police had been called in because initially the cause was not known.
However, he said it was now believed to have been started by a cigarette butt.
“There’s nothing untoward there. We’ve done an investigation, and we had no suspicious activities,” McGrade said.
The fire caused minor damage to up to eight homes, including destroying fences and a backyard gazebo, as the intense wall of flames reached within metres of homes.
The speed of the fire sparked concerns, as it rapidly grew and sent plumes of black smoke over the suburb.
Roads were gridlocked as residents tried to evacuate the area, while others tried to defend their homes.
Most of the fire was put out within an hour as fire crews tackled the flames from the air and on the ground.
No injuries were reported.
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