# Nice storage spot, construction guys! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 31, 2017, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412 "2017-03-31T14:42:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/1 "2017-03-31T14:42:53Z")
So, it looks like storing large amounts of flammable plastic under a bridge [is perhaps _not_ a great idea](http://q13fox.com/2017/03/30/portion-of-i-85-in-atlanta-collapses-after-massive-fire/). Anyone having to deal with this? ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/2 "2017-03-31T14:55:10Z")
When I was a kid, they built a big apartment complex in a field behind my house. (A sprawling collection of 3- and 4-unit bungalows.) The workers threw some kind of tarry paper - peel-off from self-stick asphalt shingles? - into the finished but empty middle swimming pool until it was full. As this was the days of prevalent smoking, I guess it’s no surprise that it caught fire. I still remember standing no more than about 100 feet away, looking at what looked like a vertical propane torch as the concrete bowl focused the hot-burning paper goods. I can’t remember if the pool was ruined or not. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/3 "2017-03-31T15:34:33Z")
This part sounds crazy: > [@](#): > > Some cars pulled off onto the shoulder. > > But many cars on the left side of the five-lane section barreled through the thick black smoke. They disappeared into the darkness as they drove on. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/4 "2017-03-31T16:00:29Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > So, it looks like storing large amounts of flammable plastic under a bridge [is perhaps _not_ a great idea](http://q13fox.com/2017/03/30/portion-of-i-85-in-atlanta-collapses-after-massive-fire/). Anyone having to deal with this? To be fair, would you have ever thought that keeping spools of plastic conduit under a concrete and steel bridge would cause that to happen? Has that _ever_ happened? [This is what we’re talking about](https://thumb7.shutterstock.com/display_pic_with_logo/395407/128359121/stock-photo-a-single-large-spool-of-yellow-plastic-conduit-128359121.jpg). Either it was a fluke that they caught on fire, and I’m surprised that they’d take down an overpass, or it was arson, and that’s different, but I’m still surprised that it would do that much damage. Faulting them for that, ISTM, is like telling people they shouldn’t park their cars in their garage because the tires could catch on fire. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/5 "2017-03-31T16:14:24Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > To be fair, would you have ever thought that keeping spools of plastic conduit under a concrete and steel bridge would cause that to happen? Sometimes when I’m trying to get a pile of wood scraps to start burning, I use some piece of old plastic to get it started. Plastic burns scary hot–it is essentially frozen gasoline. (I once spent a long time to get a large, rotten oak that had finally fallen over burning. After a long time trying to get it burning with less extreme methods, I finally scrounged up a large igloo cooler that I could live without. It did the trick. And a bridge acts as a roof to hold the heat from a much larger amount of plastic. So it doesn’t surprise me at all that it would destroy a bridge. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/6 "2017-03-31T16:32:50Z")
1996 – An arson in March at an illegal tire yard underneath a section of I-95 in Philadelphia caused $6 million in damage and completely closed a section of the highway for weeks and partial closures for six months.[6][7] the above is what i thought of when i saw the fire on the news. they are looking at a long repair. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/7 "2017-03-31T16:38:36Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Sometimes when I’m trying to get a pile of wood scraps to start burning, I use some piece of old plastic to get it started. Plastic burns scary hot–it is essentially frozen gasoline. (I once spent a long time to get a large, rotten oak that had finally fallen over burning. After a long time trying to get it burning with less extreme methods, I finally scrounged up a large igloo cooler that I could live without. It did the trick. And a bridge acts as a roof to hold the heat from a much larger amount of plastic. So it doesn’t surprise me at all that it would destroy a bridge. And I’ll bet prior to that, your igloo cooler wasn’t kept outside, in the middle of your backyard, so that it didn’t burn down your house or garage. As for plastic being ‘essentially frozen gasoline’. Well, sure, but so is the asphalt roadbed and half the stuff in your house. You don’t keep a cell phone in your pocket, do you? I’m still going to say that, unless you can show me that this happens on some kind of regular basis, there’s no way anyone could have expected that keeping spools of plastic conduit under a bridge could caused this. I’m guessing it was arson. I’d be surprised cigarette accidentally flicked onto one of the spools could even get it going. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/8 "2017-03-31T16:51:46Z")
We also had a truck fire near here where the guy thought it was a good idea to stop under a (secondary road) overpass. They say there’s no damage but as the bridge and road surface are a decade overdue for refurb, I drive over it with a little trepidation. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/9 "2017-03-31T17:03:40Z")
Yes Joey these kinds of things happen on a regular basis: > [@](#): > > Tom Topar > > Didn’t these dunces see what happened in N.Y.C. when flammable stuff was stored under bridges? It’s like these government types live in a vacuum, never read or watch the news, or are just to busy figuring out their vacation plans to worry about doing their jobs. Not that I really expect more from government. > > TK Wallace > > @Tom Topar Was my exact comment - although NJ needed it to happen 3 times before they outlawed the practice. Well remember a huge warehouse we had at Exxon right under the Pulaski Skyway! Who thought THAT was a good idea? Right next to a Western Electric transformer factory! [https://www.wsj.com/articles/atlanta-i-85-overpass-collapses-after-fire-shutting-down-major-highway-1490924273](https://www.wsj.com/articles/atlanta-i-85-overpass-collapses-after-fire-shutting-down-major-highway-1490924273) I just had a brilliant idea: Why don’t we set up a Department of Homeland Security at the Federal level and similar departments at the state level who would systematically check for vulnerabilities to terrorist attack of our infrastructure such as this? [All terrorists would have to do is start a little fire.] ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/10 "2017-03-31T17:13:52Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I’m still going to say that, unless you can show me that this happens on some kind of regular basis, there’s no way anyone could have expected that keeping spools of plastic conduit under a bridge could caused this. there are rules and regulations about what, where, and how things can be stored in businesses and public buildings and “public service” suggestions for homes. Seems like there would be similar rules for roads. (If there weren’t before, there will be now.) ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/11 "2017-03-31T17:24:28Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > there are rules and regulations about what, where, and how things can be stored in businesses and public buildings and “public service” suggestions for homes. I’m well aware and so far all of my dealings (which are at least once a year) with the local health, building, fire and electrical inspectors (don’t see an OSHA person, but I do have to deal with occasional ‘insurance inspections’) have never even so much as hinted at not keeping plastic indoors, much less outdoors under structures with concrete covers. > [@](#): > > Seems like there would be similar rules for roads. (If there weren’t before, there will be now.) I’m guessing there isn’t now and won’t be after. Maybe I’ll be wrong, but since I’m still guessing this is arson, you can’t say ‘don’t put plastic conduit here because someone might set it on fire and ruin the bridge’. ---
**Author:** ![BeeGee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5a626/32.png) [@BeeGee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeeGee)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/12 "2017-03-31T18:01:34Z")
It’s going to depend on the MSDS for this particular conduit. Also, there’s a question of if it had recently been cleaned with a solvent or if there was any conduit cement stored there as well. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/13 "2017-03-31T20:37:31Z")
An easy way to see plastic burn (unless they have changed the formula): Take the carrier from a six pack of beverages. Cut the hole in such a way that the result is more or less a straight strip. GO OUTSIDE AND MAKE SURE NOTHING FLAMMABLE IS UNDER YOU Use a match or lighter - it will ignite quite easily. You will get flaming globs dropping from the carrier - and thick, acrid, black smoke. A great trick for small children. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/14 "2017-03-31T20:40:32Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > An easy way to see plastic burn (unless they have changed the formula): > > Take the carrier from a six pack of beverages. Cut the hole in such a way that the result is more or less a straight strip. > GO OUTSIDE AND MAKE SURE NOTHING FLAMMABLE IS UNDER YOU > > Use a match or lighter - it will ignite quite easily. > > You will get flaming globs dropping from the carrier - and thick, acrid, black smoke. > > A great trick for small children. Small children do _not_ burn that way. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/15 "2017-03-31T20:54:14Z")
Burning plastic also makes an almost musical “whooshing” sound as it drips. Small children not so much. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2017, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/16 "2017-03-31T21:33:16Z")
Without knowing about the Atlanta collapse, this could have been about the I-35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis in 2007. A contributing cause (besides poor gusset design) was construction workers placing 597,000 pounds of materials (mostly sand - I saw the piles there the day before) right above the point that collapsed. I wondered then if that was a good idea… ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2017, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/17 "2017-04-01T05:19:52Z")
> [@](#): > > Three people were arrested Friday in connection with a huge fire that caused part of an elevated interstate running through Atlanta to collapse, the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department said. > > Fire department spokesman Cortez Stafford said two men and one woman were arrested. > The three are thought to be homeless, Georgia Deputy Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner Jay Florence said. > Florence identified one suspect as Basil Eleby who was arrested on suspicion of first-degree criminal damage to property. Investigators think he started the fire intentionally, Florence said. Eleby is still in jail after being taken into custody. If convicted, he faces one to 10 years in prison. > Sophiia Bruner and Barry Thomas face criminal trespassing charges, Florence said. > **[I-85 collapse: Three arrested after major fire under highway | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/31/us/atlanta-interstate-85-fire-collapse/index.html)** > > A man has been arrested on suspicion of intentionally setting a huge fire that brought down part of an elevated interstate highway in Atlanta, a collapse that is expected to complicate traffic for months in one of the nation’s most congested cities. Did everyone notice that it was the Georgia Department of Transportation than was storing these construction materials under the bridge that caught fire? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2017, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/18 "2017-04-01T05:51:46Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > [http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/31/us/atlanta-interstate-85-fire-collapse/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/31/us/atlanta-interstate-85-fire-collapse/index.html) > > Did everyone notice that it was the Georgia Department of Transportation than was storing these construction materials under the bridge that caught fire? No, but I did see this: “the flammability of HDPE is relatively low. If HDPE materials burn, they would have to be exposed to a high temperature flame for a considerable amount of time” -Tony [\<-apparently a brother or relavetive, somehow, of someone I know, small world], President of Plastics Pipe Institute. He’s also quoted in that article as saying “Somebody had to start a fire. It doesn’t combust by itself, it needs fuel,” “Someone had to do it, It’s not like someone would have dropped a match and it started.” Of course, that’s just an a quote for a CNN piece, it doesn’t really amount to anything, other than to tell us the stuff isn’t going to catch on fire because it was out in the sun or muffler fell off a truck and some sparks hit the pipes as it skidded past it. I’m curious how they already have three names, three arrests and one person still in custody so quickly. Did they turn themselves in? If not, I have to assume the area has cameras and at least one, if not all, are regulars at the police department and the cops knew where to find them. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2017, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/19 "2017-04-01T11:45:52Z")
3 arrests made. > **[3 arrested in Atlanta fire that collapsed highway overpass](https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-atlanta-overpass-20170331-story.html)** > > Three people have been arrested in connection with the raging fire that collapsed a portion of Interstate 85 a few miles north of downtown Atlanta, crippling a major traffic artery in a city already known for dreadful rush-hour congestion. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2017, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412/20 "2017-04-01T21:45:33Z")
**3 charged in ‘maliciously set’ Atlanta highway fire may have been smoking crack** > **[3 charged in ‘maliciously set’ Atlanta highway fire may have been smoking crack](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/04/01/3-face-charges-in-maliciously-set-fire-that-collapsed-part-of-interstate-85-in-atlanta/)** > > The collapsed road will take months to repair, authorities said, making commutes a nightmare in the Atlanta metro area. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nice-storage-spot-construction-guys/783412.md?page=2)