This has been observed before and documented by Alan Farley. I've also surfaced / mentioned this phenomena on this forum, but it was "pooh-poohed" by none other than Jack Hershey. Farley called these "short circuits" whereby the volume "blow-off" takes out all of the "weak hands".
I have actively looked for the spikes and consider them reliable, particularly when they take place near support levels and resistance levels, and when coupled with similar spikes in the NYSE Tick index. That to me is the only reason to use the 1-minute charts, as I pointed out recently in another thread. I would be wary about crediting Alan Farley with this "discovery", as those who have read the old-time technical traders such as Richard Wyckoff will recognize this.
I agree that volume spikes can be very reliable. You have to use such a technique with care though as you can get burnt by trading possible reversal signals from spikes in a strong intraday trend. I think the article mentioned this.