Cigarette may have caused fatal house fire

A BLAZE which killed an elderly man is believed to have been caused by a cigarette.

The victim, named locally as John Mazs, who was in his mid to late 70s, died after a fire broke out in his ground-floor flat in Slateford in the early hours of yesterday morning.

Fire chiefs said they were investigating whether "smoking materials" were the source of the blaze which gutted the home in Hutchinson Cottages.

The body of Mr Mazs, who neighbours said was a heavy smoker, was found in the chair where he was said to have usually slept at night.

Neighbours also paid tribute to Mr Mazs, an engineer who formerly served in the RAF, describing him as a "lovely man".

Known as "Jackie" to friends, Mr Mazs, who never married and had no children, worked in a number of engineering jobs, including at the Henry Robb shipbuilders firm based at Leith.