Safety Tips

Women shown to cause freak fires at gas pumps

Pumping gas is more dangerous for women than men. Why? Because the two genders behave differently at the pump.

Men -- Get out of the car, choose their gas, put in the nozzle and stand there while the gas pumps. When the tank is full, they put the nozzle back in the pump and get into the car.

Women -- Get out of the car, choose their gas, put in the nozzle and set the automatic lever, get back into the car and wait for the pump to stop. Then they get out of the car and put the nozzle back in the pump.

And herein lies the problem: By getting in and out of the car, they may likely create static electricity, which can spark when they touch the metal handle of the pump. That spark can ignite fumes and cause a subsequent fire at the gas pump.

While this may sound like an urban legend, it’s not.* The Petroleum Equipment Institute reports that of 150 cases of gas pump fires, most were caused by women who had returned to their cars and in sliding in and out of the driver’s seat, generated static electricity. Most injuries have included singed hair and surface burns, however one death was reported.

The solution? If you need to return to your vehicle during the fueling process, be sure to touch metal on your car to discharge electricity before touching the pump handle. *Verified by www.snopes.com, the foremost urban-legend debunker.