Man who tried to kill spider by setting it alight accidentally starts flat fire 'after burning arachnid runs under mattress'
Blaze leaves apartment uninhabitable after causing £8,000 in damage
Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
A man who tried to kill a spider by setting it alight accidentally started an apartment fire after the burning arachnid reportedly ran under a mattress.
Fire fighters in Redding, northern California, battled the blaze for 20 minutes on Sunday after residents tried and failed to put the flames out with a garden hose.
A witness living in the flat told local newspaper the Redding Record Searchlight that a resident used a torch lighter – a cigarette lighter with a powerful flame – to burn “a huge wolf spider” in an upstairs bedroom.
While on fire the creature ran under a mattress and set it ablaze, Lyndsey Wisegarver, a carer for one of the men living in the flat, told the newspaper. She said it quickly spread to a flag collection and drapes.
All the residents living in the building escaped and no one was injured, Redding Fire Department chief Rob Pitt said.
It is unclear if the spider survived.
Although the blaze was quickly extinguished, it caused around £8,000 in damage ($11,000). Mr Pitt said fire fighters were able to keep it from spreading to neighbouring apartments.
Ms Wisegarver and the two men living in the apartment were told it was uninhabitable and that they would have to find another place to live.
She told the newspaper they had been keen to move out anyway. “We’ll make it work,” she said.
Wolf spiders can grow up to the size of a human hand, though many sub-species are much smaller. Its venom is considered dangerous to humans, though generally non-lethal.
Redding Fire Department has been contacted for comment.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments