It's Official: No Known Risk For Using Mobile Phone While Filling Up

from the not-a-one dept

Mon, Mar 21st 2005 2:50am — Mike Masnick

A few weeks back, we noted how odd it was that a state senator was trying to ban mobile phones at the gas station pump based on what appeared to be an urban legend about exploding pumps. Lots of folks in the comments pointed to the show Mythbusters that tried (very hard) to use a mobile phone to make gasoline vapors to explode and found it wasn't possible. Now there's a bit more evidence that you probably don't need to worry. A researcher in the UK has been studying the matter and can find no evidence that any gas station fire in the past eleven years around the world was caused by a mobile phone. Certainly makes the senator's comments that "it is a known, documented fact that using a cell phone in proximity of the gas pump can cause an electrical charge that can cause a fire that can ignite the pump" seem a bit odd. Apparently she should recheck her documented facts.

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5 Comments

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Bill Butler, 21 Mar 2005 @ 2:50am

prayer at gas stations
Prayer at gas stations has been linked to spontaneous sparks causing explosions and mass death. The power of God generates an static charge as it enters the recipient. Hopefully, legislation will ensue banning this practice. I think that this is a perfect fit for the current Congress...
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promytius syl, 21 Mar 2005 @ 7:16am

congresswoman=facts
Please do not use the above two words in any one sentence. Or congressman/facts. Or logical, or effective, or conscious, ethical, etc. Greed, avarice, egomania, power-hungry, etc. can be freely combined in any sentence regarding the 'representatives' of said adjectives.
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Nigel Pond, 22 Mar 2005 @ 12:33pm

No Subject Given
This myth was busted by the Discovery Channel's Mythbusters some time ago...
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- Mike (profile), 22 Mar 2005 @ 2:44pm
  
  Re: No Subject Given
  Which is exactly what I said in the post... but, even so, that was just trying to make the explosion happen. This study looked back at historical data to show that it's NEVER happened.
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plastic molding, 16 May 2009 @ 3:07am

cool
How's China printing industry developed this years, who can tell us? China based plastic injection molding services with low costs and supeior quality Steel and aluminum scaffolding for construction is a very useful tool.
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