Don't-it-yourself: man blows up apartment in bug spraying mishap

Here's a noteworthy story I just spotted on the Reuters website, titled "Man blows up apartment spraying for bugs?" The New York Daily News originally reported the story about a New Jersey man who, while spraying insects in his apartment, somehow let the contents of the spray can ignite. (Spraying near a lit gas burner, perhaps?)

The mishap caused an immense blast that blew the windows out of the unfortunate man's kitchen. The explosion then started a fire that destroyed eighty percent of his apartment. The man, Isias Videl Maceda, was unhurt.

I guess the question mark in the title of the article indicates the incident is still under investigation, but I think it's fairly safe to say that whatever this gentleman was doing, he was doing it all wrong! The episode is a good reminder for all of us that chemicals -- especially those contained in aerosol cans -- must be kept away from heat sources.

[via Reuters.]

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