This blows!
A Massachusetts man accidentally set his home on fire while using a blowtorch to melt ice stubbornly clinging to his roof after the winter storm that battered the Northeast last week.
The homeowner in Milton, Mass. decided to get creative while attempting to tackle the sheets of ice cemented to his roof.
He whipped out a blowtorch, scaled a ladder and got to work.
But minutes into the endeavor, his roof caught fire and flames spilled into the gutter, Local 12 reported.
The man was able to slide off the ladder and rushed inside to call 911.
When firefighters arrived not long after, the attic was entirely swallowed up by the inferno, according to the report.
Flabbergasted neighbors told the outlet that “the whole roof was consumed” in a matter of minutes.
“We pulled the gutter off that side of the building thinking it was going to be a light fire, and the whole attic was fully involved,” Milton Fire Deputy Chief John Earner told the outlet.
The frigid temperatures, which haven’t risen above freezing since Winter Storm Fern made landfall on Jan. 25, only strengthened the flames.
Firefighters battled the dual elements for hours until the fire was under control.
“When it’s cold like this, we need a lot of help. So, we did have a lot of outside towns come and help us,” Earner told Local 12.
“Just get a professional company to take care of your ice,” the chief advised. “I mean, don’t get hurt. I mean, don’t go up on your roofs.”
No injuries were reported, and the fire was contained to the lone home.
With temperatures showing no signs of rising until later this week, some are resorting to drastic measures to beat the big freeze.
In New York City, a harem of hockey hunks cozied up by Mercer Playground in Greenwich Village for a “Heated Rivalries” look-alike contest.
