Charles Darwin with a purple swarm around his head, contemplating the twist of fate that natural selection sidestepped these still-living honorable mentions.

2008 Honorable Mention

Next Prev Random Honorable Mentions have misadventures that stop short of the ultimate sacrifice. Nevertheless we salute the spirit of their colossal blunders with an Honorable Mention. Better luck next time!

Putting the Pain in Propane
2008 Honorable Mention
Confirmed True by Darwin

(December 2008, Florida) The District Chief of the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department reports, "An engine company sent a request for us to extinguish a routine trash fire. The Lieutenant said, 'You gotta see this.' An intoxicated group of men had decided that throwing paint cans into their 55-gallon drum fire was fun, but not fun enough. They escalated the excitement by tossing in not one, but three 20-pound propane cylinders.

Partially-empty cylinders are actually more dangerous than full ones because they cannot absorb as much heat prior to venting or exploding. The fun went south when one cylinder violently vented toward an unfortunate reveler. I cannot reveal the patient's name due to HIPPA laws, but he was transported to a burn unit for attention to his 'party favors.' I understand that the gene pool is still at risk from these rocket scientists, as the close call was not fatal.

ORIGINAL SUBMISSION

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Reference: Personal Account by Chip Drysdale

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