Directional Hazard Flasher

What has the directional/hazard flasher have to do with ignition? Strangest thing happened. I have a '99 Ford Ranger 4.0L and of all times to get a flat, I got one during the heat of the commute and while raining cats and dogs, in San Diego of all places. Nonetheless while parked alongside the freeway waiting for help I had my hazard lights flashing but after a while it stopped flashing thinking that the flasher must've burned out. After I got flat tire problem resolved, I went to an auto parts store and went home to install it but although I got my directional signal back, the hazard still did not work and now my truck won't start. I did some troubleshooting using schematic diagrams from Chilton and Haynes Repair books but the book drawings were somewhat inaccurate compared to what I was seeing. I re-installed the old flasher and now I can start the truck but lost directional and hazard signals. What gives? Could it be that the old flasher was bad but the new one was also bad or the wrong one? Still I don't know what the flasher has to do with starting.

For those interested in the outcome. I was wrong in my assumption that the flasher had nothing to do with the starting system. I based this on the electrical drawing I was following in two repair manuals, which were incomplete and some numberings were wrong. Nonetheless, I got a hold of the correct schematic diagram and in it it shows that there is in fact a circuit in the flasher that interrupts the ignition. That was why without the flasher my truck or any truck like mine will not start.