ST. CHARLES – A discarded cigarette Friday started a fire that caused an estimated $10,000 in damage to a two-story home in eastern St. Charles, said Assistant Fire Chief Joe Schelstreet.

The accidental fire spread from a trash can next to a house in the 1500 block of Jobe Avenue and went up the residence’s exterior wall, Schelstreet said. He noted the fire was in a rear corner of the house.

Firefighters found the
homeowner controlling the small fire with a garden hose when they arrived at 12:30 p.m., he said.