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MythBusters Bust House

ewhac writes "The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that the MythBusters accidentally sent a cannon ball hurtling through Dublin this afternoon, punching through a home, bouncing across a six-lane road, and ultimately coming to a rest inside a now-demolished Toyota minivan. Amazingly, there were no injuries. The ball was fired from a home-made cannon at the Alameda County Sheriff's Department bomb range, and was intended to strike a water target. Instead the ball missed the water, punched through a cinder-block wall, and skipped off the hill behind. Prior to today, the MythBusters had been shooting episodes at the bomb range for over seven years without major incident. It is not clear whether Savage/Hyneman or Belleci/Imahara/Byron were conducting the experiment."

7 of 631 comments (clear)

  1. Belleci/Imahara/Byron by xollox · · Score: 5, Informative

    It was definitely Belleci, Imahara and Byron. They were posting all sorts of pics of it on twitter (which have since been removed.)

  2. Re:Not to be too pedantic by Niris · · Score: 5, Informative

    It happened yesterday. It was on local news last night

  3. Re:Funny Stuff by speedlaw · · Score: 5, Informative

    You sleep when the baby sleeps-it's easier to let it win in the beginning before we destroy their time sense and make them use clocks.

  4. Re:Up stairs and through walls by gurps_npc · · Score: 5, Informative
    Momentum is a killer. Heavy weight + even low speed = will not stop.

    Back when they used cannonballs in war, they used to fire "ground balls". The balls would bounce along on the ground, moving rather slowly.

    Ineveitably some newbie would see it and try to stop it with his foot.

    The next day they call those newbies "Stumpie" .

    --
    excitingthingstodo.blogspot.com
  5. Re:Not to be too pedantic by LateArthurDent · · Score: 5, Informative

    You do realize that stories are submitted well in advance of when they're actually posted, right? Sometimes DAYS in advance.

    It's a television show. It was probably planned WEEKS in advance.

    I will believe this the minute people involved in the show are arrested and prosecuted. Until then, the safe bet is publicity stunt.

    People are not arrested and prosecuted for accidents. They were at a bomb range, not recklessly firing cannon balls in the middle of residential areas. They took appropriate precautions, but shit happens, and their insurance pays for the damage.

  6. Pictures from the bomb range! by Jon.Laslow · · Score: 5, Informative

    Although they've since been taken down, Kari, Tory, and Grant tweeted pictures from the bomb range yesterday, including said canons. Reproduced on my blog: http://laslow.net/2011/12/07/mythbusters-and-damage-control/