Filling Up Your Gas Tank May Cost You Your Life

BushCountry.org ^

[justme346]

When you pull up to fill up, experts say you need to realize you may be about to take your life into your own hands.

Ignacio Sierra stopped at the BP Station at I85 & Hwy. 221 in Spartanburg, South Carolina, around 8:30am, with his 6 year old daughter, Esperanza. Mr. Sierra stepped out of his truck to begin refueling. When he reached $8 of fuel he stopped to check his wallet to make sure he had enough money for the purchase. He went back and opened the door of his truck, kneeled in the seat to reach the visor where he kept his wallet. He saw that he had $20 so he began to pump more gas. That is when Mr. Sierra heard a loud pop. He looked down to see flames shooting out of the gas tank of his truck.

Sierra sparked a fire and was ignited when he simply touched the gas pump nozzle. He was not smoking. The engine was off. He was not using his cell phone. How did the fire start?  The state fire marshal's office concluded that the fire was likely caused by static electricity.

Static electricity is usually not dangerous but when combined with gasoline vapors at the fuel tank opening, a small spark can cause a fiery explosion. In fact, your body could be carrying a charge of up to 60-thousand volts that could ignite the gas fumes seeping out of your car!

The sad part is, hundreds of deaths from thousands of these fires occur a year and the public remains almost entirely unaware that this can occur. Gas stations have been reluctant to post signs at the pumps warning that static electricity can ignite gasoline vapors.

The following suggestions could save your life or that of someone else so please forward to those you know:

• Never allow your vehicle to have less than 1/4 tank of gasoline when refueling..
• Never Allow Children to refuel a vehicle.
• Never have children in the vehicle during refueling.
• Turn off the vehicle before refueling.
• Never smoke near a gasoline station or especially during refueling.
• Every time you exit the vehicle, discharge the static on yourself by touching the metal of your vehicle away from the fuel door area.
• Every time you approach the fuel dispensing pump, discharge the static on yourself by touching the metal parts of the pump away from the nozzle area.
• Refuel the vehicle slowly until you have at least 1/4 to 1/2 tank full. Then you may refuel at the maximum rate.
• Never use the auto-latch feature of a nozzle if available. Stay there with your hand on the nozzle.
• Never get back in the vehicle during refueling.

And the most important thing to remember if a fire occurs during refueling: Never, ever pull the nozzle out of the vehicle as this usually results in death as it did for the individual in this video:
http://www.newschannel7online.com/TSRs/gas_station_video.shtml

Many of those killed or hurt during refueling fires think that by pulling the nozzle out they will save themselves, their vehicle or those around them. Nothing is further from the truth. The inferno comes from the nozzle being pulled out and the gasoline being sprayed all around the area. Many people believe that if they pull out the nozzle, the gasoline will stop being pumped. Some of those are no longer with us to hear the truth.

Hopefully, this information has been helpful.  We ask you please forward this information to others as it could save lives. 

To forward this page to a friend using Microsoft Internet Explorer, click on "File" in the upper left hand corner, then "Send", then "Link by E-mail"

[Rodney King]

The sad part is, hundreds of deaths from thousands of these fires occur a year and the public remains almost entirely unaware that this can occur

BS. I researched this in depth about 6 months ago, I'll try to find the exact numbers, but the risk is much smaller than just about everything else you do every day, like crossing the street.

[DouglasKC]

I used to work for a company that manufactured gas pumps (Bennett Pump). Although there is always a risk, measures are taken to insure that this doesn't occur. Static testing is a routine part of quality assurance and safety. If this occurred with great frequency every pump manufacturer would have been out of business long ago.

It's far safer letting your kid pump gas then it is to let them mow the lawn.

[ValerieUSA]

How can there be hundreds of these deaths every year? I've never heard of it. I carry a huge static charge when I leave my car - the first metal I touch zaps me. My kids laugh all the time at this. I've never had a spark happen when filling my tank.

[jgrubbs]

When you continue to watch the tape you'll see the store clerk, do everything but what she should have done. She doesn't turn off the cut off valve to stop the gas flow, which would stop the fire. She leaves the place and returns to get cigarettes, still letting the gas continue to flow. 10 minutes and 100 gallons after it starts fire officials come in and try to turn off the gas, but discover there is no handle on the cut off. They have to use a quarter to maneuver the valve into an off position.

[Constitution Day]

...the risk is much smaller than just about everything else you do every day, like crossing the street.

I work for a gasoline nozzle manufacturer.
According to the Petroleum Equipment Institute,
"to date over 150 refueling fires have been documented that appear to be caused by a discharge of static electricity."

Click image below for their site.
There is a link to their report.

FRegards,
CD

.

[Icthus]

We had a flash fire start following the placement of a plastic gasoline container in the back of a truck with a bedliner.
Fire Dept said it was due to static electricity.

Strange things do sometimes happen.

[Protect the Bill of Rights]

.....Never allow your vehicle to have less than 1/4 tank of gasoline when refueling..

Does this include running on fumes? [which seems to be the only time I can get my SUV to turn into a gas station]

[Interious]

I also get zapped exiting my car, especially on dry days.

I think the risk at the pump is minimal because by the time you actually start filling, you've touched the pump, the hose, etc.

The nozzle and hose assembly probably are conductive enough to drain off the charge. In fact, I would be surprised if pump manufacturers did not intentionally design this into their systems.

[dighton]

Never allow your vehicle to have less than 1/4 tank of gasoline when refueling.

If the gauge falls below 1/4, immediately abandon your car and buy a new one.

;-)

[Constitution Day]

The nozzle and hose assembly probably are conductive enough to drain off the charge.

They are.

In fact, the hose ass'y contains a grounding wire through its entire length.
The nozzle & hose swivel must also be grounded.
This is required by Underwriters Laboratories.

[Wolfie]

Say hello to the new Bic Disposable Car!

[Mamzelle]

I don't know about the level of risk, but people often don't take the explosive nature of gasoline seriously. I owned a car once that seemed to "charge" me more than other cars (maybe the carpet?)...I always thought of this when pumping, trying to get the "zap" over with before I actually touched the pumping equipment. The other suggestions on this list are likely to be ignored.

[jlogajan]

We ask you please forward this

That's all you need to know about this email.

[Orual]

"Never smoke near a gasoline station or especially during refueling."

Never stick your hand in a blender while making Margaritas.

[RFP]

"Never allow your vehicle to have less than 1/4 tank of gasoline when refueling"
- There's a better reason for this - Todays vehicles are all fuel injected which means that they use a pressurized fuel delivery system. This necessitates the use of a pre-pump IN THE FUEL TANK as well as the main external fuel pump. The pre-pump located in the tank is delicate and actually cooled by the surrounding gasoline. If you habitually let your tank run below 1/4, you'll cause this pump to overheat resulting in wear and premature failure. Getting stranded out in the boonies by a fuel pump failure is a PITA. AKHIK.

[dalereed]

"We ask you please forward this"

Not on your life!

[mc5cents]

OH NO!!! Save us!!

[SamAdams76]

I've been pumping gas my whole life using the auto-latch feature of the pump. If the auto-latch is broken out (as is often the case these days), I wedge my gas cap in the handle so that I can do other things while the gas is pumping such as clean the windows, check the oil, grab a cold drink, etc. Never once have I had a problem with the pump not automatically stopping after the tank is filled, and I've done this hundreds of times.

I think the problem with static electricity is overstated. The biggest danger in a gas station is smoking cigarettes. Speaking of static electricity, I work with a lot of sensitive electronics such as EPROMS (which I reprogram) and circuit boards. When I went through school, they had all kinds of ridiculous safety contraptions like grounded wrist straps and the like. In 20 years of being "in the field," I have yet to zap a board, chip or EPROM and I take virtually none of those precautions they made such a fuss about in school.