By Howard Packowitz

NORMAL – A bizarre scene in a northeast Normal neighborhood late Thursday afternoon as Normal firefighters put out about a dozen small fires caused by a discarded cigarette.

Normal Fire Department public information officer Matt Swaney said a man was smoking in back of the 1700 block of Taft Drive, intended to dispose of the cigarette, but missed the garbage can. Instead, the cigarette came into contact with a cottonwood tree, igniting the seedlings, making it seem like it was snowing on a summer-like afternoon.

Swaney said a home on Taft Drive sustained several thousand dollars damage to some siding in front of a home at 1703 Taft Dr.  A back porch at a home next door was also damaged as was some landscaping and woodpiles.

“It’s definitely not something we see everyday, but it’s a good reminder that vegetation is very dry, and if you have a cottonwood tree, all those little seedling-fluff things that are everywhere are exceptionally combustible,” said Swaney,

“When they catch on fire, they like to go up in the air and light other fires.”

Neighbors were using garden hoses to put out the flames when firefighters arrived about 4 p.m. No one was hurt.

Howard Packowitz can be reached at [email protected]