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Cigarette ignited fatal fire at Prickett Lane building 

Cigarettes in a flower pot ignited dry potting soil and sparked a fatal fire at a Billings apartment complex, officials said Tuesday.

After the Billings Fire Department concluded its investigation, Assistant Fire Marshal Mike Spini said the fire started on a deck outside apartment No. 6, on the south side of the complex. That is near the apartment where the victim lived, friends and family said.

Although the victim has not been officially identified, Diana Taylor is mourning the death of her son, James, 22. . . .

The Billings Fire Department responds to fires each year started by cigarettes left in planters. The fire ignites when the smoldering cigarette, insulated by the potting soil, builds enough heat to start a fire.

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