Dropped cigarette caused fatal Stafford house fire
A dropped cigarette caused a house fire which killed a 53-year-old Stafford woman.
Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service said the blaze, at a house on Tamar Grove, Western Downs, started after the lit cigarette fell on to a sofa.
They said the fire, on Wednesday, caused "significant damage" to the ground floor after it spread.
The woman was the third person in the county this year to die in a fire caused by smoking, they added.
Three fire crews were eventually able to contain the fire but the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
The fire service said smoking materials are the third most common cause of accidental house fires.