What not to do when working with gasoline

[musiclover2000]

2 people were working on a car with gas leaking with an open flame propane heater nearby. The vapors ignited and six garages and three vehicles are destroyed, and four other garages have moderate damage. http://www.wday.com/event/article/id/91553/publisher_ID/29/

Maybe posting this will help someone avoid that happening to them.

Topic

[Bill]

Thank you for the reminder that gasoline is dangerous. Sometimes we take gasoline for granted while working around it.

[Rudy Wilmoth]

🙂 In most instances of being around gasoline while working, it is not the liquid form of gasoline that is a problem. Gasoline becomes dangerous when it becomes a vapor and you can smell it. When you can smell it means the gasoline is mixing with the air around you and is becoming dangerous. Gasoline while liquid is not as much a problem as when it is a vapor. If you come into contact with gasoline while it is in a liquid form, it will irritate and make sensitive skin raw. I have had gasoline run down my arm to my armpit and you will move quickly to wash it off your skin.
You do need to be careful with gasoline, as it is the most dangerous explosive that most people will work with. Be fearful of it’s capacity to burn and explode, but do not become too cautious and make a mistake from being afraid it’s power. In most cases gasoline is safe when contained and sealed, just do not work around gasoline while the fumes are present.
A problem most mechanics will have is becoming complacent around gasoline. When you work on cars, you will be exposed to gasoline and other petroleum substances. The familiarity of gasoline may lead a person to work unsafely around gasoline such as repairing a leaking gas tank or gas line. Just a little reminder to treat all things you do around a vehicle with respect and caution.

[Author]

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