A few years ago I had a narrow squeak. I had been touching up the underseal on my car with bitumen, and got some on my overalls. As normal, I soaked them in petrol to get the worst off, rinsed them in water and put them in our front loading Hoover washing machine, which was in an old coalhouse about 4' square off a short corridor which led from our kitchen to the back door.

A while later, a smell of petrol went through the house and I realised I hadn't rinsed as much of the petrol off as I thought. I went out to try and stop the machine, just in case. As I opened the door to the old coalhouse, thus allowing air into the coalhouse and changing the mix, there was a massive explosion, and a mass of flame knocked me backwards as the soap tray blew out of the washing machine and the top of the machine blew off. At that point my head hit the wall behind me and I lost interest for several minutes.

When I awake, I found that the ceiling had fallen in in the outhouse, the rear door had been blown through its frame and two windows had broken glass, as did the front door, which had two small panes broken, all at the height of the top of the washing machine. The force of the explosion had been such that the brass handle on the metal-framed kitchen window had snapped off as the window was blown open.

As for me, I had just lost some of my eyebrows and my fringe, my arms were red and I had a blinding headache. I disconnected the machine, and then went to get materials - glass, wood and plasterboard - to start repairs before my wife got home and asked me what happened. Regretably she noticed the scorch marks on the front of the washine machine and I haven't been able to live it down since!

Amazingly, the washing machine went on to do another four years service, although it needed a new drum a few weeks later, which could have had somethng to do with the accident. The mechanic sais he had never sen fracture marks of that sort on a drum before!

I now just use old clothes to underseal the car and burn them afterwards.

John Davies

Submitted on 01/28/2006

Submitted by: John Davies
Reference: None - personal submission

Copyright © 2006 DarwinAwards.com

James said:
Neutral: Personal Account
Washing clothes in gasoline, eh?! I know people did that decades ago (1930s) and fires were very often the result. OK, I'll vote to keep this. I thought the days of soaking clothes in gasoline were long past. I guess I am mistaken! Thanks for submiting...!

Jack said:
Definitely Keep: Personal Account
Actually, I thought that we had a similar submission a year or so back, but I couldn't find it in the archives. Thanks for a good story, John!

Jorge said:
Definitely Keep: Personal Account
Great story

The Darwin Awards Gift Shop

The Darwin Awards Condom Keep yourself out of the gene pool! A condom in a matchbook, useful for emergency contraception, bachelor parties, frat parties, and important rites of passage. LOADED inside and out with funny quotes and stories. Everyone loves this item! Friends don't let friends reproduce! $13 for Pack of 4