This Kid's About To Get An Explosive Lesson In Using Fireworks Over A Manhole

A boy in China was lucky to escape with his life after playing with fireworks and triggering an explosion that ripped the sidewalk apart.

Footage from the scene in Chifeng City in Inner Mongolia showed the boy either dropping one of the fireworks into a manhole or allowing the sparks to fall in. That ignited the methane gas trapped inside, causing the sidewalk to erupt.

No one was injured in the blast ― not even the boy, who could be heard afterward telling his mother that he was scared ― but three cars were damaged.

Methane trapped in sewers may be more common than many people realize. A 2014 study in Washington, D.C. found thousands of leaks causing methane to build up in the system, including a dozen manholes where just a small spark could trigger an explosion, according to Gizmodo.

(h/t Digg)