Tap Water Burning

Who says water can't burn? Check out the below referenced video by Josh Fox, "LIFE IN THE RED ZONE: Flammable Water in Fort Lupton, Colorado."

"Viral vids done right marry deeper meaning to spectacles like this."

By Allison Martell, Yesterday, TheTyee.ca

"Partway through this clip, a Colorado man lights his tap water on fire. The source of his water's unusual behaviour is apparently a natural gas leak, which has contaminated the local aquifer.

These days, a spectacle invites viral video. The Internet has an insatiable appetite for the shiny, rare or surprising, and fire rates pretty high on all three scales. Flammable water, then, is a ready-made viral video hit. If this clip hasn't spread like wildfire yet, it may be because burning water has gone viral before. Last March, a story about flammable water in Colorado hit Boing Boing, though without accompanying video.

But when the web is at its best, it marries spectacle with meaning. In this case, the burning water will be part of a documentary about the impact of natural gas drilling on drinking water, Water Under Attack. It's a great example of the ways that viral video and conventional documentary filmmaking can complement each other.

Filmmaker Josh Fox has been posting regular dispatches on Vimeo for a year, but started collecting them on the documentary's website last April. He actually posted a shorter version of the flaming water video five months ago, but this newer clip provides much more context." More>>>>