Clothes Taken Out of Dryer Spontaneously Combust, Causes House Fire

This is why I graciously let my wife, a trained professional, take care of laundry, while I take care of other chores that aren't as likely to go wrong like mowing, carpentry, or tree trimming.

An apartment fire under investigation on Prince Edward Island in Canada finally has an answer to what caused the incident.

Inspector Winston Bryan said in his investigation he determined that the occupant of one unit had recently completed a load of laundry, folded the clothes, and set them on a couch.

According to Bryan, "spontaneous combustion occurred with the radiation from the clothing that was from the dryer."

One person in the basement of the building escaped, and two upstairs were rescued by a neighbor who quickly thought to put a ladder up to their windows.

Bryan also says its not uncommon for a fire to start from a pile of freshly folded laundry. He says he's seen it happen five other times.

The fire department wants everyone to practice laundry safety; wait for the clothes to cool down before packing them away, folding them, or throwing them in a big pile.

Of course, check your smoke alarms.