So my DH goes up to this kid at Wal-Mart....

[GeorgeG]

He who plays Russian roulette has a five out of six chance of living to tell about it, but the odds go down significantly if you keep pulling the trigger. Now, if you use an automatic and just put one bullet in the clip, you're really stupid and will prove it on the first pull of the trigger. Go figure.

 

[Octoberbride03]

We agree. The danger is very small, but danger still exists. What we appear to disagree on is whether the chance of danger was large enough to excuse the OP's DH's behavior.

You have got to be kidding me? He didn't beat the boy over the head or pull his pants down. He pointed out a sign in a logical and polite manner. May I suggest a chocolate bar or 2 for you? A daily dose of chocolate evens me right out. See my avatar

 

[Imzadi]

May I suggest a chocolate bar or 2 for you? A daily dose of chocolate evens me right out. See my avatar

I love your avatar! I've been perimenopausing and get into way cranky moods. Of course, they pass in a couple hours. But in the mean time... I even snarked at a fellow poster on the True Blood thread the other day. Of course she rightfully called me out on it. And, when I was back to normal, I apologised. <hanging head> I feel like I should post a perimenopause warning in my siggie. I like your chocolate suggestion better. Maybe, I'll just keep a stack of chocolate bars by the computer!

 

[DarthKTrava]

Any time a kid smokes, it's stupid.

 

[brerrabbit]

I always find these kind of discussions interesting from a professional standpoint because I work in the energy industry and am currently in the retail fuels division of a major oil company. We get drilled constantly on saftey procedures and I work in an office building in downtown Houston. I don't even work at a refinery or a terminal that loads product. Quite frankly while the probability of something happening in the example given is very small, an infraction of that nature if it were an employee of my company they would be terminated as a result. No questions asked. As they say in our saftey presentations if you want to violate any of the life saving rules then you don't want to work for the company. It only takes one time to make everyone question why the rules were not followed. Look backs at instances almost always reveal that some sort of "rules" violation occured that lead to the incident. Propane is heavier than air and pools. A leak will go to the ground and like water puddle in the lowest area it can reach. Another thing that people don't think anything about is filling a portable gas tank in the trunk of a car or the bed of a pickup. Static can discharge and ignite the fumes from the gas and the gas. Yeah you can do it a thousand times in your life with no problem but on that 1001st time it could go wrong. Is it worth the risk? And I don't need to ask mythbusters to test the theroy because I have seen three seperate videos where station security cameras have captured it happening and I know for a fact it can happen. I have also seen a video of a cell phone where it ignited gas vapors being pumped into a car. I know people think that that is an urban myth but I have seen it happen.

While certainly a leak in this situation would not have as much force as a larger leak, ask some of the people that were involved in an incident in Brenham, Texas in the early 90's. A propane storage field's valve malfunctioned as they were pumping product in and it pooled till it found an ignition source. The ignition source was a guy starting his car to go to work. The resulting explosion killed ten in a rural area and rattled doors and windows in downtown Houston some 75 miles away. The investigation revealed that someone had not followed procedures and as a result bad things happened. Yeah the chances of this kids smoking igniting any propane was really small, but is that something you really want to take a chance with when he could have just gone to the other side of the building and had his smoke break?

 

[LuvOrlando]

-

 

[WDW1st-timers]

I don't know about anyone else, but I find it wildly entertaining that people are actually debating whether or not smoking near propane is a bad decision. It's like arguing whether or not water is wet IMO. It's odd to me that no matter what gets posted these days there will be someone, somewhere that makes it a crusade to point out an OP is wrong. This used to irritate me, now I'm just amused.

Please, by all means carry on...

OP, here's a for your DH.

I'm totally with you on this one!Sorry can't stay and chat I have to run...I need to finish BBQing my steaks while standing there having a smoke.
















Just kidding!

 

[Imzadi]

I'm totally with you on this one!Sorry can't stay and chat I have to run...I need to finish BBQing my steaks while standing there having a smoke.

I guess you like your steaks well done.

 

[mtomlin66]

Brerrabbit- thank you for a thoughful, informative reply.

OP- please thank your husband for caring enough to get involved

 

[DarthKTrava]

I guess you like your steaks well done.

More like flambe.

 

[CPT Tripss]

I think this would have been a case of Darwin's natural selection if the kid went poof. What a way to lose a Walmart though.

Or, "Two birds with one stone."

The odds of one of the propane tanks having a leak, the propance not having already all leaked out, and there being the perfect gas/air mix in the exact location of the cigarette to cause cumbustion is unbelievably small. There is a much greater chance that the lightpole in WalMart's parking lot falls on you while you are smoking.

I'm channeling some pit bull and killer coconut thread.

I saw a teen girl pull up to a gas pump, get out with a cigarette. then grab the nozzle of the hose with the hand that is holdinng the lit cigarette! Not the handle part, she was switching hands and grabbed it all the way at the tip! Where all the fumes are!

one: who touches that dirty part? the handle part stinks like gas bad enough...

and two: THAT IS WHERE THE GAS IS!!! and the GAS FUMES!!!

Mikeeee

Mikeeee, were you one of the people on a recent thread mocking us civilized NJ folks who enjoy having a trained professional pump our gas rather than spending the day smelling of petrochemicals?

 

[2BigKIdz]

We agree. The danger is very small, but danger still exists. What we appear to disagree on is whether the chance of danger was large enough to excuse the OP's DH's behavior.

I'm all for minding my own business but I'm not seeing your issue here. The OP's husband wasn't rude or confrontational, and even though the chance of an explosion or fire was small isn't it better to be safe than sorry?