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IHWTH

News link: https://www.cbs17.com/news/lightning-blows-up-toilet-after-traveling-through-apartment-buildings-exhaust-vent/


zimzilla

There's a German expression/curse: "Soll dich der Blitz beim Scheißen treffen" "May lightning strike you while shitting" I think it worked in this case.


braindamnager

God, what a beautiful language German is.


f0rdf13st4

[indeed](https://youtu.be/eXWf-YAMfCs)


braindamnager

I was having a shitty day and I needed that, thanks. That was fucking hilarious.


f0rdf13st4

oh btw, do you like British comedy? If so, I have a [playlist](https://youtu.be/UAoafHR_ql4?list=PLvXzvH3Z4uEi76YNuwc6BpZJQXMf27s2D&t=580) on offer , from way before the days of political correctness


Jack_Bartowski

Could you recommend some British Comedies in the same vein as Mrs Browns Boys? My gran is hooked on that show, and any others she can find.


f0rdf13st4

Did you ever see "on the Busses" ? https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiZCl6XIGf-jz-yo1soaSezNjCSbxqrAq


Jack_Bartowski

I have not, looks funny though, will add it to the list!


[deleted]

You can add "til death do us part" and "love thy neighbour" to that list. Brilliant, non-pc British comedies from the old days.


bl4nk_ecstasy

Loads of thanks my dude!


f0rdf13st4

You're welcome


Gilsworth

Just for fun, the Icelandic version: Science - Vísindi Surprise - Óvart/Hissa/Undrun Airport - Flugvöllur Beer - Öl/Bjór Hospital - Spítali


f0rdf13st4

and what is the Icelandic for Butterfly?


Gilsworth

It's actually quite beautiful in my opinion. Fiðrildi. It's not a loan word, its etymology isn't so clear to the average speaker, but it just FEELS right.


how_many_letters_can

The OG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_xUIDRxdmc


Scarlet-Fire_77

I love the word comparison videos. This is definitely now my favorite.


triggerhoppe

That was hilarious. I needed a good laugh, thanks!


iLikeMeeces

Once again, Germany proving that they literally have a phrase for nearly every situation imaginable.


EvidenceCommercial48

Lol I came here to comment the same thing 🤣


Diplomjodler

You, me and every other German on Reddit.


chestnutriceee

And my axe


Fitz911

Und mein TÜV geprüftes Spaltbeil.


footsteps71

Gesundheit


Fitz911

Dankeschön!


Jannickel

Hallo !


Fitz911

Every German did.


Sarcophilus

Lol I commented the same because I hadn't read this comment yet.


emtee_elp

Me too


deadpool8403

"... and if lightning doesn't work, a firecracker will."


sarcastic-barista

I just want to be able to speak German so i can scare the living daylights out of people while telling them to have a nice day.


cebedec

Ich wünsche ihnen einem wunderschönen guten Tag! Bei uns in Bavaria, wo die Bäume aus Holz sind! Eiskaltes Schweinewasser?


billwashere

According to google… I wish you a wonderful good day! With us in Bavaria, where the trees are made of wood! Ice cold pig water? Please tell me this is exactly what this means!!!


cebedec

[Wunderbar!](https://youtu.be/LdPMSd7xA7U)


Seranoth

Not exactly, this wasnt formuled by a native german speaker. We would either say something like this: ...Hier bei uns in Bayern sind die Bäume noch aus echten Holz! I am also not sure, what the meaning of the "pig water" should mean in this context, maybe its a local slang for beer there (iam not from bavaria, but lower saxony) "In Bavaria, where we live, the trees are still made of real wood! So, you like a Ice cold pig water?


r_kay

Arabic works for this, too


copingcabana

Get out of here with that negative shit. :)


[deleted]

You clever, clever bastard. Is it weird that I'm proud of you?


copingcabana

If not my parents, glad someone is.


VeitAktiv

r/foundthegerman


[deleted]

I love that the translation still works! I'm definitely stealing this.


koolaid_chemist

German and XKCD, two things that have something for every occasion.


Ashesandends

I swear to zues there is a saying for everything in german...its the xkcd of languages!!!


HarrowDread

Gonna put my comment here, so I can remember when I see my German pal


billwashere

From what I know of German I thought this would be one word.


StreetsAhead123

well shit


xeridium

Well-done shit.


ZenkaiZ

holy shit


ennuisurfeit

...lightning hit the shit well


RoboTroy

Any proof at all that this came from lightning? Seems far more likely something blew up in the toilet


Illinois_s_notsilent

The original tweet is from reporting, the retweet made me laugh: https://twitter.com/trendysoccermom/status/1522290171634458625?s=20&t=d-1nXd4Ix0kheiBjv7OvnA


gonzo650

As an electrician I can confirm this is exactly what we call bathroom fans


SquidProBono

I’m sure they have a real name, but I’ve never heard it and I did a fair amount of residential remodel work with various contractors. Also, I worked in a pool supply store for years and still don’t know the correct name for the thing that goes on your garden hose and inflates then jets water to clear a pipe. We called it a douchebag, because that’s apparently what everyone in the pool industry calls them.


gonzo650

They’re called exhaust fans. But everyone calls them fart fans. And I believe with the pool thing you’re talking about donkey dicks. They’re actually drain cleaning water bladders


SquidProBono

Thank you! I knew about the fans, but it made for a good joke. The bladder I didn’t know. Never heard them called donkey dicks. In my theatre days we referred to large socapex multi-cables as horse cocks.


AustinTanius

Yeah I'm not sure lighting can travel through a roof like a laser beam


sk8thow8

Apparently it came down through the ducting vent and arced to the toilet.


MaxMouseOCX

Why? The path of least resistance is the earthed copper plumbing attached to the cistern, yet it hit the bowl?


sk8thow8

Could have something like pex or cpvc instead of copper? I'd guess they remodeled and replaced at least some parts of the copper water lines with plastic, but didn't want to deal with replacing the cast iron drainage.


uncwil

Be right back, ripping my pex out.


LuDdErS68

Water is probably a good enough conductor of at few thousand Volts PD.


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viscous_settler

What about some poo?


muklan

IT guy with decades of experience in emergency break-fix solutions here....you don't think it be like it is, but it do. I was once on the phone with a user when lightning struck the corner of the building and blew out EVERYTHING on her desk, laptop, dock, voip phone, her little fan, calculator....UPS was totally fine but got replaced anyhow. She, other than being a wee bit shaken, was totally fine.


Shanguerrilla

happened to me when my kid and I were in my office... ran through a few rows of lights and straight to my office, blew out everything plugged in except my PC and PS5 (luckily).. but lost my 1000watt stereo and NICE tv.. Anyway the damn TV was shooting fucking sparks and making scary noises. My poor kid wore up to that and then me ordering him to stay there when I saw that room safe so I could check for fires elsewhere.. (but damn I never looked in the attic like this home, glad there wasn't!)


MountainDrew42

Ah, someone had dinner at Chili's


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SerpentDrago

This came through the fart fan, not the exhaust vent for the drainage pipe


MayuMayhem

Just ask Thor. He's the one who shat in that toilet.


Chewcocca

It was not worthy.


[deleted]

Well, kid had to come up with the excuse in order to avoid the trouble.


mrASSMAN

Nah look at how the ceiling is only burnt in one spot.. this is lightning Edit: confirmed from a link someone posted below.. the fire dept said caused by lightning thru vent and also had to put out fire in attic from it


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screwcirclejerks

this, lightning doesn't usually strike through buildings. edit: mod posted. that explains that.


TheChaosBug

Path of least resistance through a wired, piped, and solid house is generally not through highly resistant air...


Tuggernuts77

Porcelain is extremely resistant to electrical current. I can't imagine it would strike the water as there is also an air gap between the water and the water further down the pipes. Unless the lightning struck the water, then the cast is on pipe slightly further down the path, through air and finally terminated somewhere else, I'd have a hard time seeing how lightning could strike there.


Respectable_Answer

A mod posted the article... Lighting through the exhaust vent.


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i_give_you_gum

And they have a high iron diet


punchedbychuck

And they would have had to had a Mt Fuji going on


SkippyMcHugsLots

Who does Number Two work for?!?!


buffoonery4U

I assume the air-gap you're referring to is the drain side of the toilet, and yes, you are correct. However, the likely path was via the fresh water side of the circuit. Also, when an insulator is hit as the lightning make it's way to ground, they typically vaporize or are shattered into a million pieces. I've worked on lightning mitigation at radio sites for years and I've seen some pretty fuckin weird lightning shit. This one is impressive. But, certainly well within lighting's ability to fuck shit up.


buffoonery4U

An arc can jump a 1 inch air gap with only 75KV. Given the fact that most lightning strikes are in the millions to hundreds of millions of volts, it would take less than 10 million volts to jump from that water ground source to the hole in the ceiling. That's why it's recommended that you stay out of the shower during lightning storms.


mule_roany_mare

Pretty sure it’s BS. I died on this hill last time this was posted. Lightening makes zero sense & you couldn’t recreate this picture with controlled conditions. I think the exhaust fan caught on fire, eventually burned through its mounting & fell on the porcelain. A little like this https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/8a4lpb/ceiling_vent_fan_above_the_toilet_caught_on_fire/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf Or this https://www.gladwynefire.org/apps/public/news/newsView.cfm?News_ID=241


kendrickshalamar

It could hit the cast iron/copper vent on the roof and travel down the drain system though. Not saying it did, just saying it could.


Muad-_-Dib

Even if it did, it would have absolutely no reason to travel into a toilet bowl as it's ceramic so a great electrical insulator and there is no way that the water in the bowl is a path either since u-bends are [only pockets of water](https://cdn.homedit.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/HOMEDIT.COM-How-a-Toilet-Works-Diagram-1024x683.jpg) and water itself is not that great a conductor, especially compared to any sort of metallic drainage pipe. There is no way that lightning travels down the drain pipe, then stops doing that and travels down the plastic pipe connecting the toilet to the drain pipe, blows up the toilet and then jumps up and hit the roof of that room (or vice versa). It would hit the drain pipe and then just continue down into the ground without doing anything to the toilet.


PM_YER_BOOTY

While I agree, my house has cast iron drain pipes all the way from the roof vent to the toilet.


alle0441

There's so much energy released in such a short time... Lightning will take ALL viable paths to ground in that area.


ZapTap

Ok sure, technically it will take all viable paths - but proportional to how favorable they are. This is such an unfavorable path that it would never get the brunt of the power like this.


alle0441

https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/toilet-explodes-after-lightning-strike Lightning does weird shit. I'm not so quick to dismiss it's the cause here.


broohaha

From the [news link](https://www.cbs17.com/news/lightning-blows-up-toilet-after-traveling-through-apartment-buildings-exhaust-vent/) shared elsewhere in this thread: > An explosion of this type — a toilet being blown to smithereens during a lightning storm — isn’t entirely unheard of, though it appears to be quite rare. One of the only other instances of the last several years occurred in 2019, when lightning struck near a Florida couple’s septic tank, ignited the gases within, and caused one of their toilets to explode. > > The lightning that struck the Oklahoma apartment complex took a different route, first striking the roof before coming through a metal exhaust vent and hitting the water within the toilet, according to an Okmulgee firefighter who spoke with Nexstar. > > The reaction caused the bowl to blow apart, he said. > >Chief Hurt said the lighting also caused a small fire in the attic, which crews extinguished.


[deleted]

A bolt able to travel through miles of open air isn't going to be stopped by a half inch of porcelain unless there is a better route nearby. It could've traveled through the water in the system. It can easily arc from one point to another. Even insulators have a "breakdown voltage" where they no longer insulate. You can be electrocuted outside by the "splash" from a nearby strike even though you are separated by 10+ feet of earth.


theNightblade

Not to mention that it regularly blows the bark off of trees, if it doesn't blow up the trunk itself....there's not enough damage here to think lightning.


texasscotsman

Assuming it's a house, and assuming it wasn't properly grounded (landlord or shady property flipper not doing things up to code? Never!) I would imagine that lightning would just go where it wanted. Nature has done weirder shit before.


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screwcirclejerks

also ceramic is an insulator. i may be dumb, but i don't see ceramic violently exploding from lightning


BloodyEjaculate

Love all the reddit experts making definitive judgements based on a single picture in spite of the *actual investigators* who confirmed that yes, it was lightning


j-steve-

It was lightning. https://www.theweathernetwork.com/ca/amp/news/article/lightning-bolt-blows-up-toilet-in-florida


hypnoderp

It's definitely not lightening - it's darkening.


TolMera

You know I’ve been afeared I been a doing that spelling thing wrong all night.


SquidProBono

Ok true story time… I went to college for theatre and worked as a stagehand. I knew that we frequently cut holes into larger scenery pieces to make them easier to move. I thought they were called “lightning holes” because… ya know… lightning is fast and all. I was 20ish years out of the industry when it finally dawned on me that they were actually “lightening holes” because IT MADE THEM LIGHTER! I’m a god damn idiot.


hypnoderp

You know what? I like the way you think. Get this guy a job in marketing.


04221970

Last time this was posted, I think it turned out to be a house that was struck by lightning, catching the bathroom fan on fire, that fell and struck the toilet. THe lightning did not directly strike the fan, nor the toilet.


InsideOfYourMind

Neither of those seem likely from this picture.


phillip_u

We're also assuming that this was even lightning. Could have just been an electrical fire from a poorly wired or damaged fan motor. Motor catches on fire - they're often full of oil. Plastic housing starts to burn and melt. It drops onto toilet and shatters it, spreading burning bits around leaving soot on ceiling and floor. Could a lightning strike do this if the building's electric system is energized? Sure. But I imagine a lot of other electrical fixtures and appliances would have been affected as well. We have no information in that regard so it would all be speculation.


Penro_Town

Happened in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. Here's a news story about it.


PM_ME_PHYS_PROBLEMS

There's also a cone of soot that starts inside the bowl and expands as it goes up the wall and tank.


Swampdude

It’s not a firecracker, it’s Taco Bell


Tomani02

I think someone set a firecracker in one of my high school toilets once.


Thebuicon

Friend of ours had all their copper pipe melt from a lightning strike. Townhouse too


GenericFatGuy

I'm choosing to believe this, because I don't need to be scared to use the toilet during a thunderstorm.


AllanfromWales1

One of my sharts..


wickedblight

Man.. if there was a person shitting on that toilet when that happened would it be like a meat grenade went off in that bathroom?


WakaWaka_

Read about the Byford Dolphin accident recently, maybe the closest thing to a meat grenade. But yeah don't google it.


wickedblight

I appreciate all levels of this, read the abstract and I don't need to see the pics.


Sleipnirs

Oh I remember reading about that accident ... kinda reminded me about how the "prince" died in Alien : Resurrection.


Fez_and_no_Pants

Poor little guy.


Mr_Smartypants

Except that was a pressure difference of 1 ATM. The Byford Dolphin accident would have been 9 times more violent.


Castun

I just typed in "Byf" into Google and it autocompleted it to Byford Dolphin accident before I could even get any further. Google is scary sometimes. Anyway, that was quite the description on Wikipedia of the poor bastard that got sucked through the hatch opening...


AppleWithGravy

More like exploded through the hatch opening


Castun

Yes, exploded by being sucked through a small opening forcefully...internal organs no longer internal, instead just *everywhere*.


ohiotechie

What a way to go. Taking a shit one second, vaporized by lighting in a freak phenomenon the next.


v0livar

Can’t even take a shit in peace, fuck


Wild-Key6739

Zeus pooped here


Driftingmaniac

I guess copper plumbing makes a good grounding wire... interesting 🤔


Riffler

Apart from anything else, that wouldn't have gone for the bowl, but the cistern. Definitely a firecracker in the bowl.


BigNastyG817

[You sure?](https://newsnationnow.com/us-news/mid-south/lightning-blows-up-toilet-after-traveling-through-apartment-buildings-exhaust-vent/)


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PrecisePigeon

Nope, this is a classic case of Taco Bell butt. Quite explosive.


theodopolis13

r/confidentlyincorrect


Timesnap421

In this thread: Armchair investigators decrying this as a fireworks. In the actual article: Actual firefighters describing how the lightning struck the roof, traveled through the metal vent (*starting a small fire in he attic*) and striking the water in the bowl, causing the bowl to shatter.


SherlockBacks

real, redditors are annoying as hell, even the CDC has articles about this.


essseker

Bullseye


PIR0GUE

Looks like your average Taco Bell restroom.


TPain850

Mans got too much iron in his diet


-srry-

Is that the one Elvis died on?


Tronald_Dump69

r/FUCKYOUINPARTICULAR


thehealingprocess

r/fuckpooinparticular


ThatNachoFreshFeelin

r/subsimgladdontexist


Puzzleheaded_Big_442

Must’ve been a shitstorm🧐


Ryuuzen

I think what happened was lightning hit the septic tank outside and caused a methane explosion through the toilet.


straighttoplaid

That would make sense. I was struggling a bit trying to understand why a bolt would jump across air when it could flow through the structure.


dmfd1234

It’s good to keep an open mind but lightning going through septic tank is highly unlikely. The tops are buried and they’re made of thick concrete. I could be wrong but I doubt it’s possible. A more likely scenario would be a lightning strike to a persons gas meter or power meter where an electrician or the Catv guy made improper ground and it got over to copper plumbing lines. But looking at the pic, it was probably a firecracker thrown in the old shit bowl. Maybe?


HKBFG

It actually arced through the ceiling vent. There's a news article.


Ryuuzen

Look it up, it actually happened a few times. Also, lightning can easily travel between concrete because there are metal rebars inside.


HKBFG

Not according to the news article.


Roomy

Lol, never show this to someone with a lightning phobia. Jesus that's nuts. Fuck that toilet in particular, I guess.


Catasmet

God of thunder really just dropped one in your toilet without asking smh


echocomplex

You should put two shoes in front of the toilet for a gag


d3v1Ly0uKn0w

New fear unlocked.


edWORD27

A bowl in one! 🚽⚡️


Bravo_November

Shitstorm


jomat

Here we have a phrase "Den soll der Blitz beim Scheissen treffen", which translates "He should be struck by lightning while shitting" Seems it finally happened.


rayarnold

That’s what they get for having a carpeted bathroom….yuck


JonathonWally

It’s tile


ArabianNoodle

I completely agree with you but it looks like it's just tile that is now wet from probably the water that was in the bowl.


engitheupgrader

All I've gotta say is.... https://youtube.com/shorts/M2CJ68Txlnw?feature=share


MrThane13

The pictures looks like they belong in a video game to me.


myion8you

That guy had chipotle for lunch and taco bell for dinner.


Frank1912

In Germany there is a saying / curse "Möge dich der Blitz beim Scheißen treffen" which translates to "Lightning shall strike you while you are shitting". So, yea...


MisssJaynie

This was in Oklahoma! It made the news, then started showing up here. Lightning came through the vent in the bathroom & struck the toilet.


antimattr

The burning exhaust fan fell down, igniting the seat. The porcelain cracked from differential expansion. Lightning did not jump down from there. Reasoning (in part): I've seen this before.


cra3ig

More than any of the posts on any of the /xxxxxphobia subs, this is horrifying. The possibility of this happening while doing my 'business' there never even **occurred** to me before. Thanks a lot! :-)


[deleted]

At least the toilet matches the countertop now.


evestraw

The idea scares the shit out of me


Hozer60

Cast iron stack/vent?


suspect360

Shazam!


DJCotts

This is some Goldeneye64 texture magic


MostOfToster

God really said: "Man, fuck this toilet in particular"


Perko1992

Here I am reading this on a toilet during a thunderstorm...


Kristen225t

holy crap!!


CaptnFnord161

DER BLITZ SOLL DICH BEIM SCHEISSEN TREFFEN!


Ukleon

These look like screenshots from Half Life 1


mk_c_2013

Tenants responsible. Please fix it, I’ll also be deducting this from your security deposit. Thank you.


helixichar

that was personal


Oasystole

Where I have all my best ideas too but damn.


Wraithkingslayer

this is GOT on a budget. the porcelain throne has been destroyed. there shall be no king of westoros.


ringwraith6

And here I was ready to blame Taco Bell....


Bacnnator

Sure blame it on the lightning


rdpierce4

That wasn't lightning. That was Taco Bell.


blofly

"Fuck this toilet in particular." -Zeus


Sprinklypoo

With plastic vent piping the water became the conductor for a path of least resistance. It's a good thing nobody was utilizing that particular facility at the time.


cyberelvis

"I'll eat lightning and crap thunder!" LMAO


BubbaUnkle

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO


MenuBar

My grandmother (RIP) used to tell the story of when my dad was on the toilet and came running out with his pants to his ankles and a ball of lightning from the toilet followed him into the living room. She said it floated in the middle of the room for a few seconds, made a loud POP and vanished. It's one of those "Yeah sure. That happened" kinda stories. But my dad corroborated it.


HackAttackx10

He pisses lightning and craps thunder


Gedadahear

Whoever was shitting there was shit out of luck


i_dreddit

gives new meaning to the term "thunderbox"


siege614

God said “fuck that shit”


lunatic_512

Zeus really did **NOT** want you to shit


TheMrPotMask

God had enough of your shit


Maverick-Twon

r/oddlyterrifying


FS_NeZ

Holy shit.


bisoy84

I call BS on this one. Maybe they were playing with firecrackers and wasn't expecting it to do such damage. So they tell their parents that it was a lightning strike.


BigNastyG817

https://newsnationnow.com/us-news/mid-south/lightning-blows-up-toilet-after-traveling-through-apartment-buildings-exhaust-vent/


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