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Faunsdale, AL | Neighbor runs a trucking company. He had a driver call that he had discovered a flat on the trailer after getting unloaded at a business in next town. So this guy ran over there and on the inside dual, the beads were not seated on the rim but tire looked good. So he grabbed his can of starting fluid like he has done dozens of times before and proceeded to seat the beads.
Well this time, the tire exploded. He was deafened but unhurt, probably because it was an inside dual and he was protected by the intact wheel and tire between him and it. That tire had something in it way more energetic than starting fluid. Probably as a result of running down the road flat for a little while and getting hot. In its unseated state, it was probably safe until he provided an ignition source.
There’s a Canadian safety board (sorry I can’t remember what it’s called) investigation report that I read online a decade ago that details how a guy deflated a tire on a big wheel loader or other machine to weld up a crack in the rim. This was not the first time this had been done, they had welded on this wheel or other wheels on same machine several times before. Guy was working alone and had completed the weld, reinstalled the valve on the wheel and hooked up an air hose to reinflate the tire when it exploded, killing him and demolishing part of the building.
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Why is welding on a mounted tire dangerous?
