francisofarabia
10-24-2004, 10:37 AM
from KYW-TV Philadelphia, link below:
http://kyw.com/special/local_story_288154424.html
PHILADELPHIA (KYW) Just about everyone has a cell phone and you might be charging it right now because you used all day. Did you know there could be a fire hazard with the battery?
3 On Your Side's Jim Donovan tells the story of a local woman whose cell phone battery exploded while she was charging it overnight.
Angela Karasek got a big surprise one night when a noise in her room woke her up. “I just sat upright and it was literally flames just shooting out of this doll and I bolted out of my room screaming,” she recalled.
Angela had no idea what had happened until she looked at her Motorola flip phone that had been charging nearby. “I turned my cell phone around and that's when I realized that the whole battery was blown out of my cell phone... there was nothing in it,” she said.
The battery had exploded and the guts shot across the room sparking the fire. Luckily, it was put out quickly.
You may be surprised to hear this story but the Consumer Product Safety Commission isn't. The CPSC is aware of many incidents of fires and explosions and says it can happen with different brands and for a variety of reasons.
The cause of Karasek’s problem is still unknown.
Donovan reports other batteries have exploded because they were defective, damaged, or counterfeit.
”If you buy a second-hand cell phone battery charger or if you go on the internet, there could be problems in that connection that could cause a fire,” stated Scott Wolfson of the CPSC.
Anything metal like a set of keys that can rub against the battery could cause a spark.
This all comes as a surprise to Karasek’s mother who never knew a small battery could cause such a big risk. “We had no idea that something like this could happen. I want everybody else to know that this is a true possibility,” she said.
CBS 3 called Motorola and a spokesman said there have been other reports of cell phone explosions but that it's very rare.
Meanwhile, Karasek has sent the phone, battery, and the doll to Motorola. The company says it will examine everything and try to determine exactly what went wrong.
http://kyw.com/special/local_story_288154424.html
PHILADELPHIA (KYW) Just about everyone has a cell phone and you might be charging it right now because you used all day. Did you know there could be a fire hazard with the battery?
3 On Your Side's Jim Donovan tells the story of a local woman whose cell phone battery exploded while she was charging it overnight.
Angela Karasek got a big surprise one night when a noise in her room woke her up. “I just sat upright and it was literally flames just shooting out of this doll and I bolted out of my room screaming,” she recalled.
Angela had no idea what had happened until she looked at her Motorola flip phone that had been charging nearby. “I turned my cell phone around and that's when I realized that the whole battery was blown out of my cell phone... there was nothing in it,” she said.
The battery had exploded and the guts shot across the room sparking the fire. Luckily, it was put out quickly.
You may be surprised to hear this story but the Consumer Product Safety Commission isn't. The CPSC is aware of many incidents of fires and explosions and says it can happen with different brands and for a variety of reasons.
The cause of Karasek’s problem is still unknown.
Donovan reports other batteries have exploded because they were defective, damaged, or counterfeit.
”If you buy a second-hand cell phone battery charger or if you go on the internet, there could be problems in that connection that could cause a fire,” stated Scott Wolfson of the CPSC.
Anything metal like a set of keys that can rub against the battery could cause a spark.
This all comes as a surprise to Karasek’s mother who never knew a small battery could cause such a big risk. “We had no idea that something like this could happen. I want everybody else to know that this is a true possibility,” she said.
CBS 3 called Motorola and a spokesman said there have been other reports of cell phone explosions but that it's very rare.
Meanwhile, Karasek has sent the phone, battery, and the doll to Motorola. The company says it will examine everything and try to determine exactly what went wrong.