Found a damaged flare - police refuse to deal

[prv]

It is funny - there are a lot of posts on this forum moaning about H&S and the nanny culture, but when it comes to flares one gets the impression they are nearly weapons of mass destruction with a hair-trigger!

I guess it's because, like liferafts, they're sealed bottles of mystery whose insides most people are not familiar with.

Pete

 

[Greenheart]

Isn't the easiest thing, to fill a bucket with water, or better still a deep water-butt then 'fire' the flare while holding it well below the surface? Probably it won't ignite anyway underwater, and if it's damaged it'll almost certainly be saturated beyond flammability in a few seconds...after which you can safely bin it.

Wouldn't that method work for almost any expired pyrotechnics?

 

[Twister_Ken]

Isn't the easiest thing, to fill a bucket with water, or better still a deep water-butt then 'fire' the flare while holding it well below the surface? Probably it won't ignite anyway underwater, and if it's damaged it'll almost certainly be saturated beyond flammability in a few seconds...after which you can safely bin it.

Wouldn't that method work for almost any expired pyrotechnics?

Nope, they burn quite happily underwater if they are in OK condition. The stuff in them contains enough releasable O2 to support combustion.

 

[skyflyer]

"So you have just abandoned an explosive item in a public place, have you sir?"

Great - take me to court and see how good that looks in the paper. Anyway I would actually say 'i thought there might be more than one, went and had a look and, lo and behold there's another'

They won't take it. The station near me has a pre-printed flyer confirming that they won't take them, and saying to contact the Coastguard. Who, as we've seen, will tell you to go to the Police.

that can only apply to flares that you own, not something you have found in the street. No different (albeit less dangerous) than finding an unexploded hand grenade and taking that in to the local scopshop!

I set off my old hand flares in the back garden.

Pete

"so you have just set off an emergency flare contrary to The Merchant Shipping (Safety of Navigation) Regulations 2002, have you sir?"

MISUSE OF DISTRESS SIGNALS

Regulation 35

1. The use of an international distress signal, except for the purpose of indicating that a person or persons are in distress, and the use of any signal which may be confused with an international distress signal are prohibited

 

[skyflyer]

Developments - the local authority fireworks and explosives officer (yes, really!) just called and given my lack of proximity to water - and the inability of any government agency to cope - she is happy for me to dispose of it in a suitable way. She said if it doesn't go off, leave it in a bucket of water for 48 hours so the salts dissolve, then flush it with more water and bin the hardware!

So, firework night tonight - I'll post a video later!

 

[Cardo]

Sounds like a story for the local rag, to me.

"Police refuse to deal with dangerous explosive"

 

[Greenheart]

...the local authority fireworks and explosives officer...said if it doesn't go off, leave it in a bucket of water for 48 hours so the salts dissolve, then flush it with more water...

I had a feeling dunking in plenty of water would ultimately make 'em safe. :encouragement:

 

[VicS]

Developments - the local authority fireworks and explosives officer (yes, really!) just called and given my lack of proximity to water - and the inability of any government agency to cope - she is happy for me to dispose of it in a suitable way. She said if it doesn't go off, leave it in a bucket of water for 48 hours so the salts dissolve, then flush it with more water and bin the hardware!

So, firework night tonight - I'll post a video later!

Nice to know thats the "official advice".

I would have buried it deep in a bonfire..... I have in fact done that. It burnt away without any indication that it was there. Bit of a disappointment really!

I'd not just chuck it on to a fire though.

 

[prv]

Great - take me to court

I'm not saying I would, I'm saying the Police might have.

that can only apply to flares that you own, not something you have found in the street.

In a sensible world, yes. With today's Police force? Who knows.

No different (albeit less dangerous) than finding an unexploded hand grenade and taking that in to the local scopshop!

I've seen reports of people being arrested for similar (bringing in found firearms). Obviously stupid, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. I wouldn't risk it.

"so you have just set off an emergency flare contrary to The Merchant Shipping (Safety of Navigation) Regulations 2002, have you sir?"

Last time the question came up, we established that there's nothing specifically illegal about setting off a flare on land - except at a football match. The Merchant Shipping Regulations only apply if you do it on a vessel. There was a legal opinion quoted, from someone or other in authority, that reluctantly concurred. Obviously there are still catch-all laws that would apply if you did anything dangerous or alarming like launching rockets past your neighbours' windows or running down the street waving burning hand-flares around.

Pete

 

[Seajet]

I had a feeling dunking in plenty of water would ultimately make 'em safe. :encouragement:

I still wouldn't stroll to the bin with it stuffed inside my underpants though.

 

[pvb]

Old hand flares are also good for smoking out moles...

 

[drew silverwitch]

dial 999
which service do you require
police
police here
there is a damaged explosive device in the street at ????
click
stand back and watch
bet they wont say no now

oh from a public phone box might be best

 

[prv]

dial 999
which service do you require
police
police here
there is a damaged explosive device in the street at ????
click
stand back and watch
bet they wont say no now

Right, exactly. The mistake is to pick it up and thereby turn it from their problem into your problem.

Pete

 

[jwilson]

I have let off quite a few flares, and whilst rockets are a bit alarming, hand flares have always just burnt flamed rather than exploded. However there was one very serious injury a few years back when a Pains-Wessex white hand flare actually exploded - person test-firing it ended up in intensive care with major injuries. There was a rapid product recall, but I've spotted quite a few still clipped on yacht's bulkheads since.

 

[bbg]

There was a rapid product recall, but I've spotted quite a few still clipped on yacht's bulkheads since.

You've spotted some from the defective batch?

I have to say, before I let off any had flares (which I have done several times - a few dozen by now, I imagine) I have always gone online to check that particular incident and confirm what the defective batch is.

 

[mjcoon]

I still wouldn't stroll to the bin with it stuffed inside my underpants though.

V.G! As in "Is that a gun in your pocket or are you wearing flares?"...

Mike.

 

[prv]

a Pains-Wessex white hand flare actually exploded - person test-firing it ended up in intensive care with major injuries

Was that the one that exploded backwards and filled his guts with burning phosphorus? I always assumed that was a rocket rather than a hand flare but I could be wrong. Or have there been two such incidents?

Pete

 

[Seajet]

Pete,

surprisingly it was a white hand flare, exactly like that to the left in this pic; sorry I can't zoom in on it.

View attachment 49121

 

[mainsail1]

To be boringly serious for a moment. This is a problem that the flare manufacturers should have addressed many years ago so that there are easy procedures for returning their stupid flares to them when they expire. For example, all chandleries should have a steel bin for flares which is emptied by the flare manufacturer on a regular basis. Instead of that the flare manufacturers keep their heads low and nobody takes them to task.
The poor police get landed with everyone else's problems - ridiculous.
In this case I would phone the flare manufacturer and insist that they take action.

 

[Seajet]

Pete, you may be thinking of another incident at Cowes Week one year when a rocket flare was fired horizontally - presumably by accident - and hit a guy on a neighbouring boat causing very serious injuries; he happened to be the cousin of a colleaugue and it sounded very nasty indeed - pretty much as bad as the instructor with the hand flare, both got a gut full of phosphorous, I think both casualties are permanently disabled now.