Jesse Ramdeo
A woman captured smoking a cigarette at a gas station has sparked outrage over what is being described as a dangerous and reckless act.
The unbelievable sight even prompted the man recording the video to question himself.
He is heard saying, “I wonder if I seeing right here boy.”
The woman, who could be seen casually smoking at the gas station, sparked a wave of backlash. Fanning the flames were social media users who commented on the recording about how she was endangering the lives of other users of the facility.
Sachin Maharaj, a fire safety expert and Marketing Manager at Safety Plus Limited, told Guardian Media on Tuesday that the incident could have had a fatal and catastrophic ending.
“My immediate action was alarming; it was alarming to see that in this modern day and age, the lack of information regarding knowledge of what to do and what not to do in a gas station. There was a high probability of that simple act turning into a very horrific event,” he said.
Maharaj said the woman’s seemingly blatant disregard for the no-smoking rule could have easily kindled calamity.
He said, “The problem does not necessarily lie with the liquid gasoline itself. It, however, lies with the vapour, the gases that surround the gasoline and those gases are three to four times heavier and travel lower on the ground than regular air, that is actually extremely combustible and can cause serious harm.”
Maharaj said too often, the public takes safety at service stations for granted and noted how easy it is for a fire to start.
While it may seem straightforward that a cigarette and gas make for a combustible mix, the National Petroleum Marketing Company (NP) has since reiterated calls for safe practices at the pumps. The company also discouraged the use of cell phones when filling gas or even neat the vicinity of the fuel dispenser.
Meanwhile, Maharaj added that while no serious incident has been reported following the breach of gas station rules, now is not the time to turn a blind eye.
“A lot of people think safety is how we deal with this after, safety is about preventing, prevention is better than cure,” Maharaj said.
Another important reminder is to ensure vehicle engines are turned off when pumping gas, as an idling car increases the flammable vapours in the air.
