What is "Static Electricity?" When you scuff your shoes upon a rug on a dry winter day, your body typically charges up to a potential of several thousand volts with respect to ground. In physics this is a well-known fact and is easily verified by meter measurements. Touch a grounded object, and a spark will leap between the object and your fingertip. This kind of electric spark can only exist when a high voltage is present. The tiniest spark requires about 500 volts. Big, nasty, painful sparks require lots more voltage, up to several thousand volts. But even when no sparks are jumping, there is still a high voltage between your charged body and the ground, and you body is surrounded with an invisible electric field. Now imagine how high voltage between your charged car and the ground!!!

Couple more words about static electricity

Cold, static electricity pose refueling danger. (Auto Weekend)

The American Petroleum Institute offers the following consumer advisory and safety guidelines on vehicle refueling to help consumers avoid potential problems with refueling and static electricity.

One of many possible causes of static electricity buildup is reentering your vehicle during refueling, particularly in cool or cold and dry climate conditions. This can cause a buildup of static electricity similar to shuffling your feet on the carpet when the air in your home is dry.

If you return from your vehicle's interior to remove the filling nozzle without discharging the static buildup, in rare circumstances a brief flash fire could occur at the filling point if the static discharges and the resulting spark ignites gasoline vapors around the fill spout.

A simple precaution to help avoid this potential problem is to stay near the vehicle's fueling point. Do not get back into your vehicle during refueling - even when using the nozzle's out...

Static Electricity Case Settles for $4.4 Million; Settlement Secured by Las Vegas Law Firm, Dixon & Truman.

LAS VEGAS -- An outcome celebrated by public safety advocates: the defendants -- a major oil company, gasoline retailer and bed liner manufacturer -- were teamed against a regular Austin, Nevada citizen. If only every citizen could know what the defendants knew, and what the plaintiff learned the hard way.

On a February afternoon in 1999, James Reiland drove his pick-up truck to the neighborhood gas station to refill his portable metal gas cans. He was completely unaware of the extreme danger posed by his truck's bed liner. As he filled the gas can, static electricity generated by gas flow through the hose and nozzle, built-up around the can, which was insulated by the plastic bed liner. The build-up of static charge on the gas can grew so large that it jumped back to the nozzle, igniting the gasoline fumes, followed by the gas can. In trying to fight the fire, gas spilled on Reiland and he caught fire while his wife looked on in horror.

Birmingham-Area Gas Stations Post Warning Signs

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- It's a common thing to do -- sit in the car while filling up at the gas station. But it could be a dangerous mistake.

Static electricity, caused by sitting in the car while pumping gas, can spark a fire at the gas pump.

Experts say you have a better chance of winning the lottery than being involved in a static electricity fire at the pump, but the fires do happen.

People have experienced the frightening phenomenon in Texas, Oklahoma and Mississippi.

"The nozzle came flying out the truck. It was like a torch," said Chrissy Villavaso. "I ran into the gas station and I started screaming, 'I'm on fire. I'm on fire.'"

Villavaso unwittingly started the fire with her own hands.

"When I went down to reach for the nozzle, that's when I felt the heat," said Villavaso.

The source of fire was static electricity.

Villavaso said she is glad her baby wasn't inside her car when the vehicle caught fire at a gas station in Starkville, Miss.

"By the time I got to the door of the gas station, my car was completely on fire," Villavaso said. The Starkville Fire Department believes Villavaso is one of three people involved in static-electricity fires in the city.

Trapped between a burning pump and her car door, Villavaso had to climb to safety.

"So I just kind of put my hand on the car windshield and kind of propped myself over the door," Villavaso said.

Experts know of at least 150 cases of gas pump fires caused by static electricity. Villavaso's case is rare because it happened in August. Most of the fires happen in the winter, when the conditions are ripe for static electricity.

A national campaign is being launched to warn drivers about the dangers.

The Alabama fire marshal's office doesn't have any static fires on record in Alabama, but gas stations in the Birmingham area are getting the message and posting warnings.

NBC13 found one sign at a busy Chevron on Highway 280. The signs tell people to touch metal while pumping gas and never get back inside your car while filling up.

When drivers sit, they generate static electricity. If they don't touch anything, they can transfer static electricity to the nozzle.

"They move around in the seat. They come back out of the car and don't touch the side of the car. They don't shut the door or they would have discharged the static electricity," said Bob Renkes, of the Petroleum Equipment Institute in Tulsa, Okla.

The Petroleum Equipment Institute released data that showed 78 percent of victims at the pump are women.

Villavaso said she hopes people will take her advice.

"I never get back in my car or use the automatic trigger," she said.

Renkes said the Petroleum Equipment Institute collected and released its data for an important reason.

"We don't want people to get hurt. Pure and simple," Renkes said.

Renkes said when you get out of your car, be sure to touch metal to ground yourself.

The Petroleum Institute said 94 percent of the victims were wearing rubber sole shoes. Rubber acts as an insulator and can keep you from dissipating static electricity. So once you get to the pump, ground yourself and touch the car before picking up the nozzle.

  Dangers Of Car Refueling Restated