Windsor Fire and Rescue Services is sounding the alarm due to the number of fatal fires this year caused by careless smoking.
So far, there have been five fatal fires in the city in 2019, four of them were caused by careless smoking.
Four people have died in separate fires on Moy Ave. in June, on Copperfield in August, on Temple Dr. in September and on Louis Ave. this October.
Windsor Fire Chief Stephen Laforet says that is the highest number of fire deaths in the city since 2003.
He is strongly advising people to smoke outside and make sure cigarettes are extinguished completely.
Laforet says the risk of a fire starting from a cigarette, rises with age.
"If there is someone in your family that is elderly and smoking, we want to make sure that they are not smoking where they may fall asleep and there is an opportunity for the cigarette to light a cushion on fire, a blanket or mattress," he says.
Laforet says some smokers also don't think twice about the risks.
"A lot of people smoke their entire lives and they say I haven't had a problem, well we are seeing that the risk is real and we want everyone to put their mind to that," he says.
Working smoke alarms are also required by law on every level of a home and outside of sleeping areas.
Chief Laforet says people need to be careful when they are smoking late at night in their home because a cigarette can light a cushion or mattress on fire.
According to Fire Prevention Canada, 78% of deaths from a fire occur in a home and the majority occur from 2am to 4am.