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Joined: May 2005
Posts: 14,104
Campfire Outfitter
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OP
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 14,104 |
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A couple’s plan to reveal their baby’s gender went up not in blue or pink smoke but in flames when the device they used sparked a wildfire that burned thousands of acres and forced people to flee from a city east of Los Angeles.
The fire prompted evacuations in parts of Yucaipa, a city of 54,000, and the surrounding area. Water-dropping helicopters were brought in but the fire has proven stubborn — it grew to 11.5 square miles (30 square kilometers) by Monday morning and more than 500 firefighters on the scene only had minimal containment. No homes have burned and no injuries reported.
It's the latest in what has become a lengthy list of tragedies at events where typically smoke, confetti, balloons or other colored objects are used to reveal the soon-to-be-born child’s biological sex — pink for girls and blue for boys. Sometimes the made-for-social-media gatherings are spectacles and include explosives and even guns, and at least one had deadly consequences.
The fire started Saturday morning at El Ranch Dorado Park, a rugged natural area popular with hikers and dog owners. In summer the park's tall natural grasses dry out and turn golden, and when combined with the San Bernardino Mountains in the distance, provide a popular backdrop for family photos and videos.
Wildfires have burned more than 2 million acres in California this year, setting a state record even as crews battled dozens of growing blazes Monday in sweltering temperatures.
The unidentified couple chose the location to reveal their baby's gender. They were accompanied by their young children and had a friend or relative videoing on a cell phone, said Capt. Bennet Milloy of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The family went into a field and fired off the device, which quickly ignited 4-foot (1.2 meter) grasses, Milloy said. Conditions were perfect for a fire to spread quickly — triple-digit temperatures, low humidity, dry vegetation and a stiff breeze.
Surveillance video showed the couple frantically race to their vehicle to retrieve water bottles to try to extinguish the flames. It was futile and they called 911.
“You can't fight a fire like this with a water bottle,” Milloy said. “They had no chance after it started."
Firefighters arrived within minutes and the distraught couple told them what happened and provided their own photos and video to aid the investigation, Milloy said.
“It's a pretty tragic situation," he said. “Obviously this was supposed to be a happy event."
The couple could be liable for the cost of fighting the fire and criminally charged with misdemeanor or felony counts.
In 2017, a massive Arizona wildfire was accidentally started by an off-duty Border Patrol agent who shot a target filled with an explosive blue powder. The fire burned 47,000 acres (73 square miles) and caused $8 million in damages, Agent Dennis Dickey was charged with a misdemeanor and sentenced to probation.
Last year, a homemade explosive used to reveal a baby's gender killed 56-year-old Pamela Kreimeyer in Knoxville, Iowa. The device was meant to spray powder but instead blew up like a pipe bomb. Kreimeyer, who was standing 45 feet (13 meters) away, died instantly when debris struck her head.
Milloy said some devices used to reveal genders are harmless but others contain chemicals that produce heat and can spark fires.
He said the device used Saturday will be tested to determine what it contained. Milloy didn't know the color it emitted.
Ben
Some days it takes most of the day for me to do practically nothing...
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Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 43,862
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 43,862 |
California...
At least around here they start fires with combines.
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Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 19,056
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 19,056 |
Is it even legal for parents in CA to just 'assume' their child's gender, based on the genitalia or DNA????
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 4,184
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 4,184 |
If they know what caused it and what it was being used for then they know who did it. The question is: Will they be held accountable?
You get out of life what you are willing to accept. If you ain't happy, do something about it!
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Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 6,871
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 6,871 |
I'm sure they will be held accountable and they will be fined the costs of the firefighters, etc. I hope no one gets hurt or killed, then they will be hit with additional charges.
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Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 26,389
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 26,389 |
I thought gender was a social construct.
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 5,615
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 5,615 |
What happened to the days of just saying, "It's a boy" or "It's a girl". Everybody acts like they're the first ones to have a kid these days. Same thing with getting married. Who gives a rat's ass....
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Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 19,056
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 19,056 |
What happened to the days of just saying, "It's a boy" or "It's a girl". Everybody acts like they're the first ones to have a kid these days. Same thing with getting married. Who gives a rat's ass.... It's turned into another one-upmanship contest. Gotta be bigger, more dramatic, more expensive, than the last friend or relative.
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Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 10,206
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 10,206 |
never do a Gender-Reveal in 7-11 or Walmart , it's frowned upon.
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Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 1,475
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 1,475 |
California...
At least around here they start fires with combines. Have you heard how the Jordan fire ignited....
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Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 6,871
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 6,871 |
What happened to the days of just saying, "It's a boy" or "It's a girl". Everybody acts like they're the first ones to have a kid these days. Same thing with getting married. Who gives a rat's ass.... It's turned into another one-upmanship contest. Gotta be bigger, more dramatic, more expensive, than the last friend or relative. This one will probably be one of the most expensive...lol
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Posts: 9,189
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 9,189 |
Those fuucking idiots should NOT be having children.
I belong on eroding granite, among the pines.
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Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 43,862
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 43,862 |
California...
At least around here they start fires with combines. Have you heard how the Jordan fire ignited.... Yes, no idea if the story I heard is true or not. Some 'crazy' guy burning a ditch near his house? Dude was told to put it out and then told the deputy to f-off. Is that true?
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Joined: Oct 2009
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Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 1,475 |
Heard he called for a burn permit and was denied and elected to burn sagebrush anyway.
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Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 43,862
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 43,862 |
Koo koo bird.
Imagine he'll be arrested and charged with some sort of arson.
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Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 19,056
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 19,056 |
What happened to the days of just saying, "It's a boy" or "It's a girl". Everybody acts like they're the first ones to have a kid these days. Same thing with getting married. Who gives a rat's ass.... It's turned into another one-upmanship contest. Gotta be bigger, more dramatic, more expensive, than the last friend or relative. This one will probably be one of the most expensive...lol No doubt. "...sorry kid, but you won't be going to private school, or college......start thinking about the military opportunities now...."
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 14,408
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 14,408 |
My diploma is a DD214
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Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 3,238
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 3,238 |
Gender reveal device?? Like a flasher with a raincoat? Friction?
"Put none but Americans on guard tonight." -George Washington
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Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 23,406
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 23,406 |
our last gender reveal was pretty dang fun. Just told the wife the other day we needed to have another one. She veto'd that idea.
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,317
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,317 |
It's easy to send them the bill, but how many people have $20 mill lying around to pay it? The state will never collect anything because there's nothing to collect. They can spend a few hundred thou in litigation for nothing but the benefit of the lawyers.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” ― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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