A faulty laptop sparked a blaze in North Ridge Monday afternoon that caused an estimated $100,000 in damage.

The St. Albert fire department responded to the single-dwelling home at around 4:15 p.m. after a neighbour noticed smoke pouring from a basement window.

“It was quite tricky when the guys got there because they saw smoke coming out of the basement, yet the fire was on the second storey,” said Fire Chief Ray Richards.

He said the home had large fans set up to dry out the basement after recently suffering water damage from flooding. These fans pulled the smoke from the second storey into the basement and out the basement window.

The fire started in a second-storey bedroom after a laptop ignited nearby papers.

“We know that there were some battery problems with certain brands of laptop computers overheating. It looks like it’s one of those,” he said.

Beyond the fire damage sustained in the bedroom, the fire caused water and smoke damage to the remainder of the home.

Richards said no one was home at the time of the blaze.

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