Out With a Bang!
2000 Darwin Award Winner
Confirmed True by Darwin
Confirmed True by Darwin
Robert Rose says, "Saw a picture of this in a Time Magazine photo collection. It was a small town gas station. A father and son were inflating a tractor tire when it exploded, killing them both. They were lying on the ground with most of their clothes torn from their body. Had to see it to believe it." |
Montezuma Police Chief Lewis Cazenave hypothesized that the heat from the welding torch caused the air in the tire to expand until it exploded. Witnesses say that when the 4' diameter tire exploded, the rim left the axle "with great velocity," striking Robert in the head and killing him instantly. The force of the explosion was enough to knock a pickup truck off of a nearby lift, and the report was heard at the local police station one mile away.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited and fined the tire and wheel company, but the owner says he will contest the findings. "They were both trained. The manager and the customer told him not to, but he did it anyway."
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Submitted by: Michael Webb
Reference: The Macon Telegraph
Klaus Wiese
on Water in the Tire: Ward Kiplinger
on Gas in the Tire: Brad Warren on Tire Repair Kits: Jeffery Davis
on Split-Rim Tires: |
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