Fire In The Hole

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About

"Fire In The Hole!" refers to a series of drive-through prank videos wherein the driver approaches the service window, orders a soft drink and then yells "fire in the hole!" before tossing the drink back at the server and driving away. The documented videos are often found on video-sharing hubsites like YouTube and Break. See also: Cone-ing.

Origin

"Fire in the hole!" was first introduced as one of several drive-through pranks documented in the "Camp Kill Yourself Trilogy: Round 1" video^[1], filmed in 1999 by Brandon DiCamillo.

In English-speaking countries, "fire in the hole" is a warning call used to indicate that an explosive detonation in a confined space is imminent. According to Wikipedia^[2], the phrase originated with miners who needed to warn their fellows that a charge had been set.

Spread

The first Urban Dictionary^[6] definition of "Fire in the Hole" prank was submitted on November 10th, 2003:

The thing you say after receiving a drink from any fast food drive threw and throw it back through the window.

A few years later, "Fire In The Hole" gained notoriety on video-sharing sites like YouTube^[3] and Break^[4] where many viewers and CKY fans began uploading their own iterations of the sodabomb prank.

In August 2007, the prank also gained media attention from the local news stations^[5] in North Huntingdon, Pennyslvania after a drive-thru server was bombarded with a drink mixed with hot sauce, causing eye injury to the employee. Following the police investigation, four 17-year-old boys were taken into custody on suspicion of carrying out the prank.

In June 2008, two teenagers from Merrit Island, Florida were charged with two counts of battery and one count of criminal mischief after pulling the drive-thru prank on a Taco Bell employee. According to BoingBoing^[7], the judge ordered the boys to serve 100 hours of community service, send letters of apology to the victims and post a public apology video via YouTube^[8]. The video has been since removed.

In July 2010, a 21-year-old man from North Dakota was arrested after turning himself in to the Police and charged with Disorderly Conduct after throwing a two and a-half foot long live Rat Snake onto a Taco John's server. He was later freed without bail on his promise to appear in court.

In December 2010, a 17-year-old boy from Roseville, California was arrested after turning himself in to the Police for throwing a creamed spinach dish at a Boston Market server. As a result of the prank, the 21-year-old restaurant worker suffered second-degree burns.