A former classmate of mine once had the brilliant idea of trying to find out what happens when you set fire to a Jerry-Can filled with gasoline. He was on vacation in Norway when he tried this stunt.

After having found a cannister filled with high octane gasoline he proceeded to set fire to it with a lighter. Delighted in his action he watched it for some time noticing that the flames grew larger and more dangerous. The only precaution he had taken was making sure he lit the fire on the pier of the lake he was vacationing next to.

Feeling the situation getting out of control he thought it the best thing to kick the cannister into the lake and thereby exstiguishing the flames.

Little did he know, the Jerry-Can was made of aluminum and had turned soft under the meanwhile extreme heat. As he gave the can a good whoop his foot continued through the metal sides of the cannister spilling the gasoline all over the place.

In his panic he leapt into the lake extinguising his burning extremities. This probably saved him and made it possible for me to meet him and re-tell his tale.

Submitted on 02/17/2005

Submitted by: Jannick Mikkelsen
Reference:

Copyright © 2005 DarwinAwards.com

Daniel said:
Neutral: Personal Account
Classic stupidity through and through, but...

Jack said:
Definitely Keep: Personal Account
Could have used a better write-up, but considering that the Jerrycan could have turned into a fireball, I'll accept this as a PA.

Charles said:
Neutral: Personal Account
I'll agree with Jerry. Classic, but missing that certain something that would make it a sure-fire (excuse me) candidate.

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