Obviously, they are the static electricity the description talks about.

They seem to be attracted to the fire.

scanning for JOHN CONNOR

Security video by Saul Bass.

Many gas stations are haunted by contorting box faeries from the 2nd dimension. While they were once widely hunted by the stamp industry they are now regarded as benevolent, always trying to warn us of our own folly...

For every red box, you get another smartass reply to your comment

These are RP forums. Please stay in character.

The Red Boxes:

They're areas of the video with pixels that have changed since the last frame. They tell the VCR (probably DVR in this case) to keep recording instead of idling (recording nothing). Recording tens of thousands of frames of nothing happening is costly.

Body thetans, probably responsible for the tragedy.

movement

What's the position?!

Multiple signals, in front and behind.

Don't forget being threatened by drunk drivers when you won't give them gas. That happens a lot.

This would have turned out alright if the guy hadn't GRABBED THE NOZZLE. I know, heat of the moment and all, but come on.

I also immediately swore to myself that I would never burn up my truck in this fashion.

Maybe because it'd have been (electrically) grounded and so it wouldn't have sparked? I don't know. His big mistake was in removing the nozzle when he noticed the fire instead of leaving it in the container, but it's very easy to panic in that situation and I'm not sure I'd have done anything differently.

The gas moving though the nozzle actually creates a charge, and in the bed of a truck there is no ground to equalize the charge. It is essentially a static charge creating machine. Sparks + gas vapors = this, every goddamn time. If it is on the ground, it is fine (grounded). Next time you are at the pump actually look at it, I guarantee there is a big warning label telling you not to do specifically this.

^ This shows the average intelligence of people who 3 starred this.

Also, since the gas can has a large opening, a lot of gas fumes pour out. When the can's on the ground, the vapor dissapates very easily. In a truck bed, it's got nowhere to go but to collect in the bed.

Its all related to gravity. He was filling the gas in his truck. The truck bed was preventing the full force of gravity on the gas can, so the static electricity became lighter than air. If the can had been on the ground, gravity would have been in full effect and the static electricity would have been pulled to the ground. This is known as "grounding". Since it wasn't pulled to the ground, it was allowed to rise and mix with the gas in the air immediately around the spout. This resulted in a chemical reaction that ignited the liquid gas.

SCIENCE!

Hey, there's a strict heirarchy for videos that show fires at gas stations. Now, if this guy had managed to set himself on fire and run around, that would have made it a four star video. If he set himself on fire, ran around, collapsed dead and then had someone steal his wallet, then that's five stars. I'd like to have given you more, but it's the law.

I prefer the idea that they planned this, and were waiting to cavort in a box-fairy-esque manner in the fire.

So I'm not the only one who strongly suspects he was trying to put out a fire with gas. Wow.