DATE: MAY 13, 2021

Officials in Montgomery County say a driver was using hand sanitizer while smoking a cigarette. They say this is a bad idea, especially in an unventilated place like a car. The driver suffered minor burns.

SOURCE: FOX 5 Digital Team

DATE: SEPTEMBER 7, 2020

Texas mother of 3 suffered serious burns from trying to light a candle right after using an alcohol-based sanitizer. An explosion occurred and her home went up in flames. Spending several days in the ICU suffering from second and third degree burns to her face, arms, and legs. The National Fire Protection Agency considers alcohol sanitizers as a “flammable liquid.”

SOURCE: GOOD MORNING AMERICA

DATE: APRIL 17, 2020

The materials in most common alcohol sanitizers are ethanol (ethyl alcohol) or isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol or 2-propanol) and these hand rubs tend to have a flash point within 60-70F. Consequently, that’s room temperature and they do not need an external heat source to cause them to give off vapors. Once vapors concentrate in the right proportions of fuel vapors with the oxygen in the air, the only thing missing to make them ignitable is a viable ignition source.

SOURCE: NATIONAL FIRE PROTECTION ASSOCIATION