General Hospital star Kelly Monaco’s house fire caused by a CIGARETTE flicked by passerby

The Los Angeles area home of General Hospital star Kelly Monaco, 45, went up in flames on Friday the 13th and the blaze was sparked by a lit cigarette, it is being reported.

The soap opera star’s Sherman Oaks property reportedly suffered thousands of dollars in damages after a passerby tossed a lit cigarette butt into a neighboring lot which caught fire, TMZ reported.

According to the outlet, it’s not believed that the blaze was intentionally set. 

Tragic: The Los Angeles area home of General Hospital star Kelly Monaco, 45, went up in flames on Friday the 13th and the blaze was sparked by a lit cigarette, TMZ reported (seen in 2016)

Monaco revealed that on the ominous morning she woke up to a fire burning in her front yard near the windows of her home.

The star fled to safety but the house went up in smoke and, according to reports, is currently uninhabitable.

Security footage of the fire, which was obtained by TMZ and given to investigators, will help pinpoint the exact cause of the blaze.

‘Something as little as a cigarette butt can cause casualties and devastation,’ Kelly said of the incident.

Scary! The soap opera star’s Sherman Oaks property reportedly suffered thousands of dollars in damages after a passerby tossed a lit cigarette butt into a neighboring lot which caught fire (seen in 2005)

Monaco has starred as Sam McCall on General Hospital since 2003 and has earned two Daytime Emmy nominations for her soap acting.

The star was also the very first winner of season one of Dancing With the Stars in 2005, partnered with Alec Mazo.

Southern California is in the midst of a severe drought, causing conditions ripe for wild fires.

January to March was the driest on record for the state and this week Governor Gavin Newsom urged residents to conserve water.

Much of the state is currently in a ‘red flag warning’ until Friday due to dry conditions, warm temperatures and gusty winds. 

Newly compiled data reveals the risk of wildfire facing every property in the United States today, and the predicted risk 30 years on in 2052.

The data shows that stretches of the American west, and much of California and Florida, face a 1% to 6% annual likelihood of wildfire today, with that likelihood skyrocketing to between 26% and 86%.

The data also predicts that the at-risk territories will grow over 30 years, with swaths of the United States west of the Missouri River facing up to an 86% annual likelihood of wildfires.

The data was released by the New York-based non-profit group First Street Foundation on Monday. It is the first comprehensive look at the wild-fire risk facing every property in the United States, as the U.S. government only provides such information concerning flood-risk.

Executive director of First Street, Matthew Eby, called the predictions over the next 30 years ‘just mind-boggling.’

The data comes as climate change has spurned a spike in wildfires across America, while inflation and skyrocketing housing-costs force Americans out into more fire-prone areas. There are currently wildfires burning in more than a dozen states across the country.

Last week, a wildfire in Laguna Nigel, California, tore through a community and reduced 20 multi-million dollar mansions to rubble.

Devastation: Last week, a wildfire in Laguna Nigel, California, tore through a community and reduced 20 multi-million dollar mansions to rubble