Indiana Makes Switch To 'Safe' Cigarettes

INDIANAPOLIS --

Safety is behind a new type of cigarette Indiana retailers will be required to sell starting next month.

Under a new state law, all cigarettes sold starting July 1 must be fire-safety compliant, 6News Sarah Cornell reported.

Paper ridges on the cigarettes will stop them from smoldering, causing them to burn out if left unattended. Experts said the safety measure will help cut the risk of fires.

"What happens is someone may take a cigarette and he may fall asleep, and it will drop down on furniture or a mattress and it will catch fire," said Assistant State Fire Marshal Jim Bennett.

So far, 44 other states have adopted the fire-safe cigarettes, but not all smokers are sold on the idea.

"I don't like it. Don't like it at all," said Sherry Brown, a smoker of 14 years, who said she call tell the difference with the new cigarettes.

Cleda Wombles, who works at the Dinner Bell grocery store on Indianapolis' south side, said she may quit smoking because she dislikes the new cigarettes so much.

"They're harsh. They cause headaches, and we've lost customers here over them," she said.

But others said they don't expect the new cigarettes to deter that many customers.

"Even when the prices went up back in April, a few people complained, but we were still just as busy as ever," said Ann Reeves, a night manager at the Dinner Bell.

The cigarettes don't look different from the conventional kind, but the packs are marked as safety compliant.

Store owners will have 60 days after July 1 to sell all of their other cigarettes. After the grace period is over, excise police will start randomly checking stores to make sure they're selling only the safety compliant variety.