A Comparative Ignition Propensity Study of Foreign and U.S. Cigarettes
Abstract
The United States and Canada have the highest fire death rates in the Western industrialized world, over twice as high as those of England, France, and Japan. While the careless handling of cigarettes has been asso ciated with only about 7% of the residential fires of known origin in the U.S. in recent years, these fires are also associated with over 25% of the fire deaths. Several groups have suggested that the differences in fire deaths between the U.S. and other countries is the design of the cigarettes made and sold in those countries.