Kill It With Fire? Man Nearly Burns Down House Instead After Using A Blowtorch On Spiders

“There was a spider, I panicked,” the meme says, showing an image of a burning house. “But I think it’s gone now.”

Everyone has seen the meme about getting rid of spiders by burning them with fire. However, while the meme is funny, a Californian man has proved the reality is not really hilarious at all. Using a blowtorch, the man managed to cause significant damage to the second floor and attic of his parents’ house while trying to get rid of black widow spiders.

According to KFSN-TV, Fresno Fire was called out to a blaze that was started by a man who was trying to eradicate black widow spiders by using a blowtorch. The house he burned was his parents’ home, which he had been house-sitting for them. Luckily, while the house was damaged, no one was injured.

Well, except for the spiders.

The fire occurred Tuesday night in the Woodward Lake housing development. According to the report, 29 firefighters attended the scene and managed to save the house even if there was damage to the second floor and attic.

As a result of the blaze, Fresno City Firefighters have had to issue a warning via their Facebook page, suggesting people not use blow torches to set fire to spiders as a way to eradicate them.

“Please don’t use a blowtorch to kill spiders,” the caption on the video post read.

https://www.facebook.com/fresnocityfirefighters/posts/10155819283593365?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARCbo7w5obOdacI_gt1b-pyz1PpQpd0qtk8MHw3AoMJ283MLTK1Ebg5JMH7YrIRwtFOuee_M9mY3eZBNcscOgiXmF29hYw2C0Pgv4dO7dlshtHYGjayth7gaNeXetjIzrL2dRk5Ag7llkUf18UknDAsGW0zTavCEbm4cXw7VG4-XYnAypy3Ku3YV6XSSSYSl8pjsROBfCVzLEhiVvl48hnlyA7FcM-d7uA9sMKzIIA&__tn__=-R

Christina Fan, who reported on the story for ABC 30, also posted a picture of the incident to Facebook.

“Well, this is a new one…,” she captioned the image. “Firefighters say a man who was house-sitting for his parents accidentally lit the place on fire with a blowtorch while trying to kill black widow spiders.”

According to the L.A. Times, Capt. Robert Castillo of the Fresno Fire Department says the man, aged 23, had been trying to burn the spiders which were on bricks on the outside of the house. However, a crack between bricks is the likely culprit that allowed the flames to enter the house and ignite flammable material inside the walls. This led the fire tearing up the walls to the attic. It is estimated the damage bill is around $10,000.

So, there you have it. The next time you are confronted by a spider in your home and are considering burning it with fire, you may want to try another avenue. Like, maybe insect spray or even your own shoe.

Anything but fire.