Man Using Blowtorch To Melt Snow
Sets His House On FireWednesday December 24, 2008
CityNews.ca Staff
O.K. we know you hate shovelling snow and we know clearing your driveway over and over again is a major pain.
You can hire someone to clean it off for you. Or you can wait for it all to melt in the spring.
But under no circumstances should you do what a man in New Bedford, Massachusetts thought was a good idea. The homeowner thought he'd save some time and trouble by burning the snow off his back porch with a blowtorch.
You don't have to be the Amazing Kreskin to know what happened next.
The hapless homeowner got too close to his wooden framed house and accidentally ignited the vinyl siding. The flames quickly licked the outside and spread into apartments on the second and third floor.
At least 25 firefighters were needed to contain the blaze that followed, which resulted in $30,000 damage to some bedrooms, created structural troubles and scorched the electrical wiring.
Cops don't plan to charge the man, thinking he's already been punished enough. But authorities advise the best way to get rid of unwanted snow is to use what most of us have employed for years - a good old fashioned shovel.
As far as we know, not one of them has ever led to fire.
