KING COUNTY - A forty year old man in Fall City, nearly burned down the Mt. Baker National Forest when he left a pot of beans unattended and boiling on the stove. He reportedly took his children to the International House of Pancakes during the lapse of attention.
It has been reported, but is unconfirmed, that this man is a volunteer firefighter, as well as an accomplished cook, and as such, should have fully understood the danger in his actions. An 18 year-old pot was destroyed in the incident.
"Beans kill," says Washington State Fire Marshall, Richard Beninya. "Every year we lose a couple responders and more than a dozen civilians to bean-related incidents. Flatulance, fires, fiber-induced gastritus, a whole host of maladies and dangers await the user of the legume."
Last week, in Twisp, beans were to blame for a horrible fire that swept through a mobile home park. Nineteen people were hospitalized for exposure to a toxic gas. Three trailers were also completely gutted during the ensuing fire.
It has also been reported that Mexican Jumping Beans are slowly making their way north from the Tijuana-San Diego area. Last year, feral jumping beans were first reported living in the wild by the Salton Sea. Confused shore birds are considered the most likely avenue by which the jumping beans have begun their migration towards Canada. Already, Mexican Jumping Beans have been spotted in southern Oregon communitees. No fatalities have been attributed to the killer jumping beans, however, a 3 year-old girl in Novato did have one removed from a nostril.
"This is the time of year when we typically see beans in the home, and accidents like this happen," says Dick Beninya. "I want everyone to fully understand that beans are dangerous if you turn your back on them."
Mexican Jumping Beans are not suspected to have played a role in the near fire in Fall City, yesterday.
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