Man Tries To Kill Spider At Gas Station With Lighter, Sets Pump On Fire


Spiders, gas pumps, and lighters are apparently not a good combination — especially for one Michigan man who became so frightened over the eight-legged creature that he decided to use a lighter to kill it. You can see where this is going, right?

The unidentified man was pumping gas at a Mobil gas station in Center Line, Michigan, on Tuesday, September 22, when he noticed the spider crawling on his car near the gas tank. Obviously, the most logical thing to do would be to pull out your cigarette lighter and light it on fire — especially while the tank is being filled with highly flammable gasoline.

Unfortunately, the man’s plan backfired terribly as the lighter sparked a large blaze, which proceeded to bounce from the vehicle’s gas tank to a gas pump as the gas station’s employees looked on in shock.

Employee Susan Adams somehow managed to remain calm after witnessing the whole ordeal, and was able to shut off the pump from inside the gas station. She then called the Center Line fire department to report the incident. Meanwhile, the man grabbed a nearby fire extinguisher and was able to successfully put out the flames before the firefighters arrived.

Thankfully, the man was able to escape the situation without any serious injuries, and his car only received minor damage. However, the gas pump is another story, and looked to be completely charred. The man later admitted his mistake, and explained that he is deathly afraid of spiders and was simply trying to kill it. Although embarrassing, it didn’t stop the man from returning to the gas station as a customer as he arrived on Wednesday to apologize for his actions.

Center Line, Mich.,
An unidentified man tries to kill a spider with a lighter as he pumps gas.

“There are some people that are scared of spiders, but would you set it on fire? No,” Susan said, according to the New York Daily News.“He was sorry,” she added. “He was sorry, he said he didn’t know. It is just one of those things that happen — stupidity.”

Since then, the employees at the gas station have been having some fun of their own with the surveillance videos, doing voiceovers as they tried to figure out what the man was thinking while he set the bug ablaze.

This is just one example of how dangerous pumping gas can be, and why they post warning signs on the pumps, urging customers to refrain from using their cell phones and smoking, among other things.

According to the American Petroleum Institute,static electricity fires tend to occur mostly during cool or cold and dry climate conditions, although they are very unlikely. The site explains that one of the most important things a customer can do to avoid a static electricity flash fire is to not reenter their vehicle while pumping.

Man Tries To Kill Spider At Gas Station With Lighter, Sets Pump On Fire
The Mobile gas station in Center Line, Mich.

While it may seem inconvenient to stand outside while the tank is being filled, it generally only takes about two minutes to fill a gas tank, and will greatly reduce the risk of a fire igniting. If you cannot avoid getting back into the vehicle, it is important that you touch a metal part of the vehicle with a bare hand before doing so.

Some other important rules to go by are to make sure that the ignition is turned off while you are pumping gas, and do not smoke, light matches, or lighters anywhere near gasoline.

So, the important question here is: did the spider live? What do you think? Leave your comments below.

[Image via YouTube screenshot]

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