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Man almost blows his own legs off in mole vendetta

The man's ire was provoked by the presence of moles in his garden - Wayne Hutchinson / Design Pics/Getty
The man's ire was provoked by the presence of moles in his garden - Wayne Hutchinson / Design Pics/Getty

A Czech man’s overzealous attempts to rid his garden of a mole problem ended up with him nearly blowing his legs off.

The 45-year-old took the ill-advised decision to use the kind of explosives contained in powerful fireworks to blast the tiny animals to oblivion.

He packed the F4-type “Dum Bum” explosives inside the mole tunnel, covered them with concrete tiles and, for unknown reasons, then decided to stand on top.

The usual minimum distance for fireworks that contain this type of material is 75 feet.

When he detonated the explosives, the ensuing blast was evidently far greater than anything he had anticipated.

Police who were sent to the scene found a 3ft-deep crater in the ground, the sort of hole that would normally be left “after the destruction of ammunition or a mine explosion,” they said in a statement.

Blood was splattered around the detonation site, they said. Some of the concrete tiles had been blown more than 60ft by the force of the blast.

The “liquidation of a mole…almost turned out tragically,” police said with some understatement.

Neighbours heard a huge explosion and saw a plume of smoke rise from the man’s garden, in the town of České Budějovice, south of Prague. The man broke both his legs and was rushed to hospital.

Officers issued a warning against the use of illegally bought pyrotechnics, particularly as the festive season approaches.

“New Year’s Eve celebrations are approaching, so let’s be sensible - only buy fireworks in shops and strictly follow their handling instructions,” said Jiří Matzner, a spokesperson for local police.

Milos Zeman, the Czech president, this year signed a new law banning fireworks during sports events, with rule-breakers facing fines of up to CZK 100,000 (£3,300) or even stadium bans. The legislation is expected to come into effect from February 1.