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The Inertia

An Arizona border patrol agent admitted he accidentally started a Santa Rita Mountain foothills fire in 2017 that sparked a massive blaze after he detonated a gender-reveal explosive (we didn’t know those were a thing). The explosive contained the chemical Tannerite. You can see the explosion above (looks like it was a boy). According to reports, Dennis Dickey shot a target during a gathering to reveal the sex of his unborn child with family and friends.

Only the blaze, known as the “Sawmill” Fire, went richter, charring 47,000 acres and costing well over $8 million to fight. The Forest Service apparently released the video to the Arizona Daily Star as part of the Freedom of Information Act.

For his part, Dickey was forced to pay $220,000 after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of starting a fire without a permit. Dickey said starting the fire, “was one of the worst days of my life.”

 
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