The FDNY says the Monday afternoon fire that claimed the lives of a man and two of his daughters was started by a five-year-old child playing with a lighter. A mattress caught fire in the Bushwick two-family home on Putnam Avenue—according to the NY Times, "Some of the building’s residents tried to put the fire out before calling 911 by dragging the burning mattress to a lower floor." more ›

11-year-old Boy Scout Owen Halpin found a lighter on the school grounds Wednesday. Like most boys, any fire-related item is of immediate interest, so he pocketed it. But another student spotted Halpin with the lighter and narced him out, so the superintendent of the Jamesburg, N.J. middle school took swift action, suspending Owen (for one day) for weapons possession. "We take our security here very seriously," superintendent Gail Verona tells CBS2. And so does Halpin's father Patrick—he called the police and told them that many of the teachers are probably packing the same kind of weapon. Burn. more ›

Yesterday, the FDNY said that the Chelsea apartment fire that claimed five lives was likely caused by a child playing with matches or a lighter. Fire officials apparently found remnants of matches or a lighter in the kitchen, "where papers atop it fueled the blaze," according to the Post. Neighbors also said one of the children "played with fire in the past." But Leonel Balbeuna, brother of the mother who died alongside her husband and three children, said, "There's no way they played with matches. If they say it was matches, they need real proof." Tenants of the building, owned by the NYC Housing Authority, are holding an emergency fire meeting, about the building's firetrap conditions--there are no fire escapes, the window guards are difficult to remove, and the layouts are tricky. more ›

Fire officials said that the fire on West 18th Street that took the lives of five family members was caused by a "juvenile playing with a lighter or matches." The lone survivor, a 10-year-old boy, is in "dire condition," according to the Post. Fire officials have also been urging New Yorkers to check their smoke detectors and make sure they have batteries and are working (landlords are required to install them in apartment buildings, but tenants must maintain them)--as smoke detectors were disabled in both the apartments of the Chelsea fire and the fatal Bushwick fire. Also, develop an escape plan in case of a fire. more ›