BREMERTON—An errant cigarette butt appears to have caused the 3-alarm fire at Edgewood Villa Apartment in Manette that left 16 people without a home yesterday.

“The tenant of the apartment admitted to throwing his cigarette butts into a cardboard box on the deck,” said Fire Marshal Mike Six.

The fire started in a third floor apartment in Building F around 3 p.m.

Six estimated that 12-15 firefighting apparatuses — engines, cranes, ambulances — were called to the scene. The majority were from Bremerton Fire but some came from Central Kitsap Fire and Rescue and South Kitsap Fire and Rescue.

Most displaced residents were able to find a place to stay with family or friends, but two took shelter at Peace Lutheran Church, according to Emily LaCroix, client services coordinator with American Red Cross.

LaCroix said the Red Cross is accepting donations for the residents, but they don’t have a list of specific needs yet.

“At this time we don’t have a specific idea of what these people need at this time because they haven’t been able to get into the building at the this time,” LaCroix said.

The Manette Neighbor Coalition created a gofundme page to support the residents.