I've stuck a firecracker down my man hole with similiar results.

I would have previously said that you shouldn't drop a firecracker down a manhole because it would be uninteresting.

Wow! You can't do anything in China without the act being filmed by at least two cameras? That is impressive, although the impression isn't that good.

THAT. WAS. AWESOME

Hipchewy1: That video was great, his freaking clothes get blown off.

I had to watch the slo-mo a couple of times before I could parse what happened to his jacket.

What a Jackass.

/waits to see Steve-O stand on a manhole while the crew throw a firecracker down the manhole.
//so many ways that previous statement can be taken when referred to Jackass
/cringe

The CHUDs do NOT like it when you put firecrackers into the sewers.

Thunderboy: Hipchewy1: That video was great, his freaking clothes get blown off.

I had to watch the slo-mo a couple of times before I could parse what happened to his jacket.


I don't know enough about firecrackers, sewer gas, or explosions to understand the specifics of the two blast waves, but it was cool. He's extremely lucky he was off-balance enough to be knocked backwards slightly by the initial blast, otherwise he'd be missing most of his face.

When the kids were running around in the immediate aftermath, I was worried they were going to be crushed by the falling manhole cover. Luckily, it only killed someone's balcony herb garden...

methane is powerful stuff.

T-Boy: Wow! You can't do anything in China without the act being filmed by at least two cameras?

That's your takeaway here? Something in China was caught on camera, therefore ALL of China is blanketed with cameras?

When I was a kid I didn't drop firecrackers into the sewers because, even at ten years old, I feared the gas could explode.

Never knew if it actually *could*.

Thanks China, for answering that question.

So THIS is how they built the Pacific Railroad.

LasersHurt

T-Boy: Wow! You can't do anything in China without the act being filmed by at least two cameras?

That's your takeaway here? Something in China was caught on camera, therefore ALL of China is blanketed with cameras?


That is what I tookaway, too - that and they are all so small.

This guy could make anvil launchers (new window) nervous.

Something tells me that the sewers are either much more leaky or less ventilated than those in the States.

super slow instant replay shows his coat got blown off. that was kinda neat.
doesn't look like he died
clip was just about perfect length for content

+++ would watch again

What's amazing is that in the slow-mo it looks like he actually didn't get hit by the metal manhole cover itself. That one lucky, albeit stupid, sob

Shoulda listened to this guy.


pops (new window)

That was an unbelievable fireball... not the initial pop, but what looked like a rocket-booster light-off immediately afterward. I'm so glad the kids had the sense to back off a few feet before daddy got all explodey with the methane. Man that could have been worse in so many ways.

Loomy: When the kids were running around in the immediate aftermath, I was worried they were going to be crushed by the falling manhole cover. Luckily, it only killed someone's balcony herb garden...

Exactly... I was wondering where that extremely heavy object was going to land.

Gulper Eel: The Chinaman in this case is the issue.

What the fark are you talking about? The chinaman is not the issue here, Dude. I'm talking about drawing a line in the sand, Dude. Across this line, you DO NOT... Also, Dude, chinaman is not the preferred nomenclature. Asian-American, please.

/I expected the cover to come down on one of the kids, I'm glad that was not the case.

Video from China, narrated in Norweigian, shown to U.S. viewers.
Got it.

I hate it when man hole covers land. they look so cool flying though.

This came to mind.

I think I'd disagree entirely with the headline. This guy demonstrated exactly why you should drop a firecracker down a manhole. Pure awesome. Plus an easy way to get your coat off in a hurry.

I'm more concerned with the fact that the Chinese are now so far advanced that they have 2 stage rocket propelled manhole covers.

Is that like a Cleveland Steamer?

LOL He had a short fuse

Those kids learned. Yes they did.

Myth:

dennysgod: What's amazing is that in the slow-mo it looks like he actually didn't get hit by the metal manhole cover itself. That one lucky, albeit stupid, sob

I'd be pretty surprised if his arm wasn't broken. If you look real close between 0:23 - 0:24 it hits his fore arm just before blowing off his jacket.

LasersHurt: T-Boy: Wow! You can't do anything in China without the act being filmed by at least two cameras?

That's your takeaway here? Something in China was caught on camera, therefore ALL of China is blanketed with cameras?

Wow, that's worse than the U.K!

That was nuts. I had a friend show me something similar when I went to China. He used home made bangers, lit one and tossed it into a wooden barrel of water. I thought the water was gonna put out the fuse, how wrong I was. He blew the shiate out of that barrel. I could feel the shockwave from that thing. When I asked if it was illegal, he said "It's china!"

Pizzafark: [sharetv.org image 195x260]

Shoulda listened to this guy.


pops (new window)

YOU LIE! (you can stop watching after about 5 seconds)

Really need to get this as a picture meme.

I did this as a kid, but it was down a storm water grate not a sewer access cover. The goal was to blow the grate off, but of course that never happened (the air was quite happy to just go through the grate). Plus, since it was just storm water down there, no methane.

The sound was super cool, though. Sort of like a metallic buzz as the echoes flanged down the pipe and back. Unfortunately, my crazy and dangerous best friend Morris didn't think that was good enough. So we started pouring gasoline down the grate and letting it vaporize a little. I won't tell you how much we poured in for the final firecracker, but it was enough that flames shot about 12 feet up out of the drain and it was burning down there for a long time. Grate stayed on, though.

/don't even THINK about doing this at home
//we're what you call "idiots."

"Don't be jerk. This China!"

I used to be a pyrotechnician until a manhole cover found the chink in my armor

hogans: This guy could make anvil launchers (new window) nervous.

Something tells me that the sewers are either much more leaky or less ventilated than those in the States.

Link (new window)http://goodspeedupdate.com/category/manhole-covers
Washington DC is famous for exploding manhole covers.

relaxitsjustme: I used to be a pyrotechnician until a manhole cover found the chink in my armor
I like your slant on the subject at hand.

It is precisely what mythbusters described.
First blow was the gas in the up-down portion burning off cleanly producing thrust, second stronger blow was the rough fast combustion from the main pipe with debris in it.

Awesome video too. "hey kids, watch this"

Quick question:

Can this happen in America, or is that more shoddy Chinese work which caused it?

and on the other end of that sewer, in Canada: Link (new window)

watch till 1:25 for the punchline, running to the right