Idiot at gas station won't put out cigarette, so attendant uses fire extinguisher

boing
21

Smoking = stupid.
Possible & improbable explosion = unsafe.
Together, a lethal combination.

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22

Sure sure. That’s why he calmly walked up to the extinguisher, prepped it, and unleashed all that retardant on that man. He was worried for his safety. No chance it was an overreaction to an idiot is there?

Ah, so he is a hero. Got it. SMDH

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23

Now that is an authentic patina.

Just a few days ago a coworker asked if anyone else smelled burning, turned out there was something burning – his own jeans – how we laughed.

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24

I’m so glad I don’t have to worry about “possible lethal escalation” during customer service interactions

25

Actually, gasoline isn’t particularly flammable; gasoline vapor, on the other hand… Well.

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26

Ehh. Act sufficiently the dangerous fool in public, and someone WILL eventually firmly chastise you. The asshat with the cigarette is lucky he didn’t end up talking to a cop, instead.

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27

If the gas station attendant reasonable believed he was preventing a possible explosion, then there is no assault here. The investigating officers, the prosecutor and the jury can look into your interpretation of the tape as each make their respective decisions.

If the cigarette was actually an immanent danger of causing some kind of explosion, then I suppose you could use that word. Legal analysis of guilt rests on the reasonable belief of the attendant, not on the truth of whether there was danger.

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28

Well put, in my opinion. Frankly, I’m perfectly OK with this being a richly-deserved comeuppance for an idiot, but your point stands, either way =).

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29

I like how the dope had a hat helpfully labeled “DOPE”.

In the same way it’s assault to shove someone out of the way of an oncoming bus, I guess.

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30

Humbabella beat ya to it ;).

31

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32

I would concur. This falls under the “Guess wrong and you die horribly” level of probability.

I haven’t seen that show and I sure as hell don’t smoke but a lit cigarette heats up a lot when you draw on it to judge by the glow intensity and color change so one has to ask if they tested that as well…

And a single test isn’t conclusive. Too many variables.

People who do this are also stupid enough to light a fresh one and I’ll bet a lighter’s flame is more than adequate to set off vapors and such people are careless enough, one might drop a spent butt on the ground and find a few drops of spilled gas or more concentrated vapors…

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34

Sometimes the stupid literally burns.

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35

Those types of extinguishers have retardant chemicals in them that are no joke. Had i been the gas station employee i would have requested the driver leave and kill the pump serving his car from the inside (which can be done). Emptying the extinguisher on him seemed like going too far.

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36

There’s a point where possibly risking the lives of everyone present obviates the need for politesse, in my opinion, although precisely where that point is varies by the individual, as well as by local laws.

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37

That not every single time somebody smokes at a gas station they will literally explode?

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38

The attendant was already inside, saw the guy smoking, went out, talked to him, immediately pulled out extinguisher and dumped on him. If he was that determined to put a stop to it then it would have been faster to kill the pump from the inside and ask the guy to leave or put out the cigarette if he really wanted gas.

But i’m specifically criticizing the attendant. Seriously, screw any idiot smoking at gas stations.

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39

Kill the pumps, tell him that he’s not buying gas here today and is now trespassing. That can all be done from behind the bulletproof glass.

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40

Gas stations here usually have an intercom from inside to each pump. My assumption was that the attendant already cautioned him at least once, but noodlebrain found it more important to stand around posing with his smoke while not actually performing any useful function.

Also speaking for here - gas stations are private property. They generally have ‘no smoking’ stickers and signs plastered all over the place. Staff have the right or responsibility to enforce the rules. Regardless of what anyone, including Mythbusters, thinks of the possibility of gas igniting due to a lit cigarette present, dope dude was in violation. My personal take is, meh. I thought it was a pretty ingenious reaction. (In fact, I’ve seen signs saying things like ‘anyone seen smoking in this area will be assumed to be on fire, and appropriate action will be taken’, so…who knows?)

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