SEATTLE -- A Seattle house was set on fire Tuesday by a man trying to kill a spider with a makeshift blowtorch, CBS affiliate KIRO-TV reports.

It happened around 8:30 p.m. Firefighters said the man who rented the house was trying to kill a spider in the laundry room with a can of spray paint and a lighter. The flames quickly spread through the room and into the attic.

"I saw the flames coming out of the side of the house and then popping sounds," neighbor Sue Green said.

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Fire crews worried there could be ammunition in the house. They told neighbors to go back inside. The threat of explosives in the house was later ruled out.

"There was giant clouds of smoke just pouring out of the windows," said Kaitlin Sharp, who lives nearby.

Neighbors hosed down their houses and yards hoping to keep the flames from spreading.

The man who started the fire lives in the house with his mother. When the fire got out of control, he called 911. The fire caused $40,000 worth of damage to the structure and $20,000 worth of damage to its contents.

The Red Cross is helping the renters.