Siding of South Whidbey home scorched by small fire Thursday

The homeowner threw a cigarette butt into a wastebasket. It caught on fire.

A fire caused minor damage to the siding of a Freeland home Thursday afternoon, but there were no injuries, according to South Whidbey Fire/EMS.

Deputy Chief of Operations Terry Ney said the owner of a home on Topaz Court had thrown a cigarette butt into a wastebasket containing plant material, which caught on fire and caused the small blaze.

Firefighters responded to the spark around 3:37 p.m. on Sept. 10.

The homeowner, however, had already subdued the flames with a fire extinguisher by the time they arrived.

Ney said South Whidbey Fire/EMS remained on the scene about half an hour to make sure the minor fire hadn’t spread to the home’s interior.

Ney estimated that the fire caused a few hundred dollars in damages.

Ney described a small black scorch mark and damage to the siding of the home and the underside of a roof overhang.