MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Listen to 911 call of Seattle fire: So I was trying to kill a spider

Jul 23, 2014, 12:00 PM | Updated: 12:13 pm

Seattle Fire crews work to put out the flames at a house fire they say was started when a man used a makeshift blowtorch to kill a spider. (Seattle Fire)

(Seattle Fire)

This would have been a hard call to make.

A 911 call has been released of a man who was trying to kill a spider in his Seattle house with a makeshift blowtorch.

The man was very upfront with the 911 dispatcher about what started the fire.

“So I was trying to kill this spider and I think a bunch of dryer lint caught on fire.”

Seattle Fire officials said last week the man used a can of spray paint and a lighter as a blowtorch to kill a spider in his laundry room.

“I don’t want to encourage people to do this, but that’s what he did,” said Kyle Moore, a spokesman for the Seattle Fire Department. “The spider tried to get into the wall. He sprayed flames on the wall, lit the wall on fire, and that extended up to the ceiling.”

Moore highlighted there are much safer ways to kill spiders. As the gravity of the situation unfolds on the call, it seems the man likely got that message.

“It’s smoking pretty bad. It’s [expletive], almost to the roof now.”

Fire officials say the blaze caused about $60,000 worth of damage. But Moore said he’s pretty sure the spider didn’t survive. “The whole wall went.”

Listen to the 911 call:


The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Listen to 911 call of Seattle fire: So I was trying to kill a spider