Mich. mayor seeks ban on personal flamethrowers

The mayor called the proposed uses "pretty specious" and "silly" and said the devices should be illegal in Michigan

Sep 4, 2015

Detroit Free Press

WARREN, Mich. — They can shoot a stream of flame 25 to 50 feet. Their proposed uses include controlling weeds and insect hives, clearing snow and ice, facilitating a controlled burn to clear brush, starting a bonfire — or just for having fun.

Two Midwest companies — one in metro Detroit, the other in Cleveland — are selling personal flamethrowers on the Internet, with prices ranging from $900 to $1,600. But at least one Michigan official — Warren Mayor Jim Fouts — is trying to extinguish the use of the devices in his city, the state’s third largest.

"I'm very concerned about it. It's very dangerous in a lot of situations," Fouts said, adding that the devices could cause house fires, damage property and cause injury or death. "The pain and death it could impose is overwhelming."

Full story: A right to own flamethrowers? Warren mayor wants them banned