A lucky binman had a narrow miss after a fire extinguisher dumped in a waste lorry exploded just feet away.
Footage showed the worker walking just behind the vehicle as the violent blast happened.
It stopped him his tracks and left a plume of smoke rising into the air and shrapnel falling to the floor.
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Luckily the metal shards missed him.
It happened in Shifnal, Shrops, when the lorry compressed the gas-filled canister, as reported by Need To Know.
A spokesperson for Shropshire Council said: “On a normal collection day our waste collection crew in Shifnal was put in danger when a fire extinguisher exploded in the back of the bin lorry, with shards showering down near the crew.
“This explosion was the result of household waste being incorrectly disposed of.
“We urge residents to help keep people safe by disposing of any fire extinguishers or NOx canisters at one of our household recycling centres, where they can be handled with care.
“This highlights just how dangerous these items are when compressed in the truck.
“Stay safe and separate your waste.
Jeff Sears of waste firm Veolia, said: “In Shropshire, we pride ourselves on carrying out essential services whilst putting safety first in the workplace.
“And we do not accept our people or the communities we serve being put in danger.
“We ask everyone to make these simple changes that will greatly decrease the chance of fires in our collection vehicles and local sorting facilities.
“This will have a huge impact on keeping the vital industry we work in safe and ensure that the people that handle waste are kept out of harm’s way whilst protecting the valuable materials residents work hard to separate for recycling.”
David Vasmer, of Shropshire Council added: “The dangers of putting batteries, gas canisters, vapes and electrical items out with the general waste or recycling are very real and is something that puts collection crews at risk of injury.
“It’s great that our residents want to recycle but we ask them to take extra care by making sure they do not put such items out for collection.”
