The Pub That Went Bang

The incident I am about relay occurred in Australia in 2000 and is yet another incredible tale of how somebody operating within our industry, blasted himself to infamy.

A fireman who worked for the Canberra Fire Brigade recalls that one of the more interesting cases he was involved in concerned an explosion that took place at 1:30AM in the morning. At the scene of the blast they found an abandoned pub that had as a result been reduced to a pile of wreckage.

After three days of removing debris, the remains of a local plumber was finally found and from there they were able to piece together what had happened.

It seems that the licensed plumber in an effort to save money on supplies had been inside the old pub cutting sections of copper piping. He inadvertently sliced through the gas main and sparked a huge explosion sending glass, roof tiles and other debris, hurtling to distances as far away as 500 meters. There was some speculation that he may have been smoking at the time.

Perhaps the old cliché “the cheapest method isn’t always the best” is particularly applicable here. It’s usually followed by the other famous cliché “it will cost you more in the long run” and in the case of our intrepid plumber, it most certainly did.

Ernest Roper
Regional Manager Durban 

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION. 

WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU !