Fire patrol blames E-cigarette for starting fire

[Petrodus]

I find this hard to believe ...

Fire patrol blamed for bosque blaze
Electronic cigarette dropped in dry brush
Article: Click Here



What sounds more believable is the person was smoking
a real cigarette and dropped it into dry brush ...
and made up the story about the fire was caused by an e-cig

 

[JollyRogers]

You have got to be kidding me. Seriously? This is a cover up if I have ever seen one...

 

[OnnaB]

I suppose if you held the bat button down long enough...or had a bad bat go thermal, this could happen. Just watch...that'll be the newest "reason" to ban e-cigs....sigh.........!!

 

[NorthOfAtlanta]

I hate to say it, but I could see this happening. When I started and before I found ECF and got educated I was using an overpriced mini that would stay on if I over filled it and it leaked. If someone had read the stories about exploding batteries and choose to toss it instead of unscrewing the atty like I did it may have got hot enough to start a fire in the extremely dry conditions in that area.



EDIT: Especially if the cart was knocked off and the atty was exposed.

 

[Petrodus]

The Corrales fire chief says that village employee and two others were
actually patrolling the bosque near Romero Road looking for fire when
one of them dropped an electronic cigarette sparking the blaze.
The group says they tried to put it out, but it just grew too fast.

So ... one in the group accidently dropped his e-cig and immediately
the brush caught on fire and spread so fast the group couldn't put it out.

The way I read between the lines is:
One of them was smoking and tossed a cigarette which started the fire.
All 3 agreed to the e-cig story to cover for the employee that was
smoking on the job.

 

[NorthOfAtlanta]

Oh well so much for my theory, Occam's Razor strikes again.

 

[Petrodus]

Oh well so much for my theory, Occam's Razor strikes again.

Heck ... Your theory is possible.
I just don't believe the reported fire was immediately started by a dropped PV.

 

[NorthOfAtlanta]

A cigarette .... dropped wouldn't start it immediately, I think the 3 of them changed the timeline on how long it was on the ground.

 

[Petrodus]

Very possible ...
I think we all can agree the 3 of them agreed to spin their story

 

[Vocalek]

I must have been 8 or 9 years old when I went to join my parents who had walked back into the woods. On the way there, I noticed smoke coming from the grass on my right. I walked over and saw a cigarette .... in the center of it. I thought of trying to stamp it out, but it was a little too big for me. I then ran to my parents, which took such a long time that by the time we got back we had to call the fire department to put out the fire burning up about 3 acres of our field. Luckily it was only weeds, not crops.

 

[DMF]

On the heels of the "Click, Bang!" program, and the continued reference to his "cuttoff after 5seconds" repetition about his battery, and his constant referring to how unsafe every ecig is but his own,.. I find the whole sudden "it's ecigs that caused the forestfire" thing fishy.

 

[Bill Godshall]

Here's the AP article and a KOB TV broadcast
E-cigarette blamed for Romero fire in Rio Grande bosque | KOB.com

Both included scrutiny about the absurd claim that an e-cigarette started a fire.

While the city points to e-cigaretes as the culprit, eveyone isn't buying the story.

E-cigarettes can only be activated by puffing on the device or pushing a button, Stevie Vigil, Orchid Chamber Smoke Shop spokesman said.

"Our big selling point is that you can smoke them anywhere," Vigil said.

 

[JENerationX]

What sounds more believable is the person was smoking
a real cigarette and dropped it into dry brush ...
and made up the story about the fire was caused by an e-cig

Yup.... that's what I posted as the most likely story last night. He "noticed it was missing as he ducked under a tree branch"... and the fire was that big in the time it took to find it? Bull.....

 

[Bill Godshall]

Carl Phillips: Erasing the line between health-related news and entertainment (on claim that e-cigarette caused fire)
http://ep-ology.blogspot.com/2012/07/unhealthful-news-215-erasing-line.html

 

[Petrodus]

Wow ...
That was a really cool, enjoyable, and amusing read.
Carl Phillips pulled back both hammers and pulled both triggers
at the same time.


I still think one of the employees tossed a real cigarette
that caused the fire then made up the story about it was
caused by an e-cigarette to cover his A-S-S for smoking on the job.

 

[DaveP]

What I read says that ecig juice is heated to about 200 degrees Farenheit in the process of creating vapor. I've also read that a dry coil (before it pops) can reach 500 degrees Farenheit. An atomizer coil is enclosed inside a metal barrel that spreads and dissipates heat and isn't likely to directly contact brush, which according to a Google search on wildfires takes about 572 degrees F and up to ignite. The average atomizer wouldn't have the capability to generate the kind of heat that would ignite dry brush. A Li-ion battery in thermal meltdown might if it vented flame, but the story says he noticed it missing after ducking under a tree limb. No catastrophic failure was reported.

I'd bet on a cigarette, which is rated at 752F idling and 1292F when puffed. Expert testing will debunk the story, but the news will hang on to the original.
http://www.physlink.com/education/askexperts/ae1.cfm

If this one makes it to Mythbusters, someone please advertise it one ECF so we can all watch it! Maybe a request on their web site might result in an episode, since electronic cigarettes are so controversial these days.

 

[roadkillstewie]

Seems the 'employee' should be able to identify the make/brand of the E-cig, to which it could be 'tested' in order to verify accuracy of the claim.

 

[KForrester86]

what a bunch of clowns. a PV is the last thing starting a fire imho. I want whatever they are smoking

 

[Petrodus]

Saving grace is few (if anyone) including the boss even believes
a dropped e-cig started the fire. As I said before, what most likely
happened was an employee tossed a cigarette and things quickly
got out of hand ... They made up the e-cig story so not to get
busted for smoking on the job.

Childish transparent cover-up attempt
The dog ate my homework

 

[TennDave]

The dog ate my homework!!