Family’s home burnt down after charging vape explodes
A family’s home has been destroyed after an overcharged vape exploded.
Hannah Boyd, 37, from Brighton, East Sussex, was making dinner when she heard a smoke alarm upstairs go off last November.
The mum-of-three and her family including husband Calum, 39, ran out of the house after he found a fire in their son’s bedroom.
Belongings of the family were also destroyed after the fire gutted the boy’s entire bedroom, despite firefighters arriving within six minutes.
The fire was caused because the fully charged rechargeable vape was left plugged into a chain of extension cables.
Hannah wants to raise awareness about safe battery charging and said: ‘At first I thought the beeping was our new smart meter, which beeps a lot, but luckily Calum went to check.
‘He smelled smoke half way up the stairs and when he opened our son’s door he saw the leaping flames.
‘He screamed “there’s a fire, get out, get out!”.
‘Luckily he shut the door again or, the fire service said, the whole house would have started burning.
‘It was terrifying and it has been devastating for us.
‘I never ever thought something like this could happen in my home but it did and it all happened so quickly.
‘We’re very vigilant and careful, we don’t burn candles or anything.
‘I just remember standing there watching our house on fire. I think I’m still feeling the shock of it.
‘We just want to warn other people so this doesn’t happen to them.
‘The fire service said the vape exploded causing a series of mini fires which all merged into one big one.
‘So many people leave things to charge on soft surfaces, you never think it will happen to you, but it’s really dangerous.’
The fire was so hot that it melted the smoke alarm outside the bedroom and destroyed family heirlooms and gifts.
They were given temporary housing which became permanent after staying with friends for two weeks and in a hotel for a month.
Hannah said the family did not have contents insurance.
A spokesperson for West Sussex Fire & Rescue said: ‘The fire was found to have been caused by an overcharged vape battery.
‘Rechargeable devices containing lithium-ion batteries, such as vapes, can go into thermal runaway when overcharged.
‘This is an uncontrollable event that causes large quantities of highly toxic, flammable vapours to be produced in seconds, before catching fire.
‘To help prevent a fire in your home, ensure electronic devices are charged on a flat, solid, and stable surface away from flammable materials.
‘Don’t leave them charging unattended or overnight and always unplug the charger when the device has finished charging.
‘Never overload an extension lead by plugging in too many appliances or chargers. This could cause the plug on the wall socket to overheat and start a fire.
‘Only use one socket extension lead per socket and never plug one extension lead into another.’
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