THIS is the story of a fire, a trash can and the council man who worked fast.

A public rubbish bin outside the Taste of China restaurant on Abbott St, Cairns, went up in smoke just as a group of council workers began to re-mark a disabled car park behind it at 10:30am,

Council line marker Charles Scorey extinguished the blaze in a matter of seconds.

“The only thing we’re missing is marshmallows.” he said.

Mr Scorey said bin fires happened often around the city, normally caused by cigarettes which had not been properly put out.

Encased in a steel cylindrical can, the bin has an inner plastic liner which was destroyed in the fire.

Council maintenance staff were notified.

“They might take it back, put a new one on and get it professionally cleaned,” Mr Scorey said.

“Those plastic bins burn quickly.”