When John Steffen died, his family had little doubt that a lifetime of cigarette smoking was to blame. Then, the Nebraska Department of Health got an unusual tip.

Today, we begin a two-part series on the promise and the peril of vaping. Guest: Julie Bosman, a national correspondent for The New York Times, spoke with Kathleen Fimple and her daughter, Dulcia Steffen, in Omaha, Nebraska. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily.

Background reading:

• John Steffen trusted vaping could help him quit smoking. Instead, he became one of vaping’s first victims in Nebraska.
• Vaping can cause lung damage resembling toxic chemical burns, according to researchers at the Mayo Clinic.