NFPA Journal: Roll-your-own cigarette establishments presenting new challenges to the fire service

UDPATE: The Associated Press recently reported that New York state and New York City have joined forces to address the growing number of roll-your-own cigarette establishments. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said these stores endanger customers by selling cigarettes not complying with fire safety standards. 

 

The owner of a roll-your-own cigarette shop in Seattle cleans one of his rolling machines. Photo by Newscom.

"Mission accomplished."

Those were the words proclaimed in 2010 by fire officials nationwide when Wyoming became the final state to pass legislation ensuring all cigarettes sold in the U. S. would adhere to specific fire safety standards.

Those same officials now face another battle to ensure that the fire-safety intent of the law is not eroded: roll-your-own establishments that let customers make their own cigarettes, which do not use the fire safety standards required for all manufactured cigarettes sold in the U.S.

A story in the latest edition of NFPA Journal examines this issue throughout the U.S., where some states are citing a disregard of the statewide fire-safe cigarette laws that were prompted by the efforts of NFPA’s Fire-Safe Cigarette Coalition.

“NFPA feels strongly that stores with roll-your-own machines fall under fire-safe cigarette laws that define manufacturers as ‘any entity that manufactures or otherwise produces cigarettes or causes cigarettes to be manufactured,’ and states should be enforcing this provision,” Lorraine Carli, NFPA's vice president of Communications tells NFPA Journal. “Without enforcement, you are allowing two fire safety standards — one for those that pay the price of traditional cigarettes, and one for those that pay for less expensive roll-your-own cigarettes."

Other short stories included in the latest edition include residential sprinkler news from across the country--including new Faces of Fire profiles and videos--and new studies on firefighter health and U.S. emergency preparedness. Read them today.

-Fred Durso, Jr.

Comments

[Heather]

I live in Minnesota and I don't believe there is a place here that you can have someone else roll your cigarettes. I can understand how it can be a fire hazard to have these machines and not have them be regulated.

[Brain Lara]

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