A friend posted on Facebook about doing over $6000 damage to her kitchen while using a propane torch to brown the meringue on a chocolate pie...

I did a search to see if it made our local news and came upon this little tidbit from last year...

Gopher Everett?

http://www.usatoday.com/story/...-blowtorch/32626361/

Cooking squirrel with blowtorch to cost tenant $2M

HOLLAND, Mich. — A woman whose boyfriend sparked a 2012 apartment fire using a blowtorch on a squirrel is on the hook for $2 million in damages to the Holland Township complex, the Court of Appeals ruled.

Wednesday’s ruling reverses a lower court decision that held Barbara Pellow responsible for only $15,400 in damages caused by the Oct. 10 blaze that consumed 32 units at ClearView Apartments.

The woman’s boyfriend, Khek Chanthalavong, had been using a blowtorch to remove fur from the squirrel on a wooden deck. Owners of the complex claimed cooking a squirrel on the deck violated her rental agreement.

Even though her boyfriend caused the fire, Pellow is still liable under a lease agreement for what justices described as a "fur-burning escapade."

“Because defendant signed the lease agreement, she is presumed to have read and understood its contents," the three-judge panel wrote.

Dozens of people at ClearView Apartments in Holland Township lost everything in the fire. Insurance carrier Travelers Indemnity Co. paid out more than $2 million to repair the damage.

The boyfriend left the torch on the deck and went into the apartment. When he returned 15 minutes later, he discovered the fire.

“His attempts to extinguish the fire proved unsuccessful," justices noted in the unpublished decision released Wednesday.

The lease agreement held Pellow responsible for fire damage caused by negligent or intentional activity. Pellow argued that she was not liable for damages under the Michigan Truth in Renting Act and the Michigan Consumer Protection Act.

The Court of Appeals says it is a breach-of-contract lawsuit. Her contention that provisions of the lease agreement “were never explained to her’’ don’t hold water. The law does not require that the landlord “read and explain" the lease agreement she signed, justices wrote.

Its five-page decision directs the Ottawa County Circuit Court judge who handled the case to rule in the insurance company’s favor and “determine the appropriate amount of damages’’ owed, which the insurance company said tops $2 million.

quote:

using a blowtorch to remove fur from the squirrel

Eeww! If you've ever singed your hair, you know what that must smell like.

Hey...at least Florida can't claim this one

quote:

Originally posted by SIGguy229:
Hey...at least Florida can't claim this one

And I was relieved this wasn't in the Carolinas.

quote:

Originally posted by Bisleyblackhawk:
A friend posted on Facebook about doing over $6000 damage to her kitchen while using a propane torch to brown the meringue on a chocolate pie...

Propane torches are a useful browning tool. They are also useful for caramelizing crème brûlée.

But be careful.

...but for singeing rodents, maybe not so much.

There's a Foxworthy joke in there somewhere

quote:

Propane torches are a useful browning tool. They are also useful for caramelizing crème brûlée.

So that's what they mean by "mousse and squirrel"?

Q: Probability of insurance company recovering $2m?

A: Zero

A friend who is a fire fighter just outside of Boston told me about a call from a guy trying to roast a pig in the bathtub.

"... singeing rodents ..."

I have a name for my punk band now !

GGF

"Dinners not ready until the smoke alarm goes off".

I think most Chinese BBQ places use fire to remove the pig's hair before roasting it, skin on.

I've seen the same process used on dogs in South Korea.

quote:

“His attempts to extinguish the fire proved unsuccessful," justices noted.

Clarity of judicial comment at its best.

I'm thinkin' about a salad for supper tonight.

I don't want to unfairly assume his financial situation but I'd wager that any dude flame broiling a squirrel in an apartment may have some trouble moving enough funds around to deliver the 2 million.

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Shugart:
I'm thinkin' about a salad for supper tonight.

If you need to remove hair from a salad, it's been in the 'fridge too long.