Ohio man says craving for Hot Pockets saved his life

An Ohio man discovered this week that satisfying your cravings can not only quench your hunger, it just might save your life.

The factory worker had a hankering for Hot Pockets, a savoury quest that led him to leave his house just before a twin-engine charter jet crashed into it, killing all nine people onboard.

Jason Bartley is usually home around 3 p.m., an hour before his shift starts, which is when the accident took place. At 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday, the day of the crash, Bartley had spent time looking at vacations online when he realized he had a few errands to run. After he finished running around, he didn’t go home straight away. Instead, he headed to a Dollar General store to buy a breakfast and dinner Hot Pockets.

When he drove home about six minutes after the crash took place, his normally quiet neighbourhood was thick with smoke and flames. He told NBC News that he initially thought he’d left something on in his apartment and it had caught fire.

“My apartment was the one that took the direct force hit,” Bartley told the station. No one was inside of the four-unit residence; Bartley’s neighbour who is also usually home at that time had taken her dog to the pet store.

Bartley says all he has now are his the clothes he was wearing when he left the house and his car. His friends have set up at GoFundMe account since he didn’t have renters insurance.

Police say 12 families are without homes as a result of the fatal crash.

“It’s pretty devastating,” Bartley said. “From the pictures I’ve seen, I don’t think there’s anything recognizable left.”

While the investigation is on going, a SnapChat user claims to have footage from the moment the crash took place.


The young woman is shown mugging for the camera when a bright light flashes on the screen and a loud sound is heard. She immediately gets up in shock and yells “Oh my god!”