First iPhone electrocutions and now Samsung's Galaxy S4 bursts into flames; charging your smartphone in China can be very dangerous, at least according to the news coverage.
A report out of Hong Kong may have Samsung Galaxy S4 owners worried about their prized possession. According to Xianguo.com, via PCMag, a couple in Hong Kong lost their house after a Samsung Galaxy S4 caught fire while charging, eventually burning down the couples' home. This comes about two weeks after two separate reports from China stated that a man was severely injured and a young Chinese woman killed - both by electrocution - when charging their iPhones.
The Hong Kong couple, identified as Mr. and Mrs. Du according to the report, were having a pretty tame evening, when everything suddenly went wrong. Mr. and Mrs. Du were enjoying a game of "Love Machine" on the Android-based device, which is a simple program where two names are entered and, after pressing the heart, the game states whether the two are in love or not. The couple was on their living room sofa at the time, and the Galaxy S4 was charging, when suddenly the device erupted into flames.
Panicking, Mr. Du threw the device onto the couch, which caught fire - the flames eventually reached the curtains and soon were "out of control," engulfing the rest of the house. Mr. Du claims the battery, phone and charger were all Samsung brand products, though that's hard to confirm considering everything in his house has been destroyed. However, the fire department investigated the house fire and has reported that there appear to be "no suspicious circumstances," according to PCMag's translated report.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Du were unharmed in the incident, even saving their dogs from the flames. Most of the house, including all furniture, appliances, and the interior were completely consumed by the fire, though.
This is the third instance in a rash of top-of-the-line smartphone-related charging accidents. Earlier on July 11, a 23-year-old flight attendant for China Southern Airline was reportedly electrocuted while answering a phone call with her iPhone 5. The device was charging at the time, according to ZDNet's report, and the woman was hit by a "strong electronic current" and killed. She was due to be married on Aug. 8. Apple is investigating the incident, in which the flight attendant was reportedly using an Apple-brand charger.
Previously, a man in Beijing was reported to have been electrocuted while using his iPhone 4. The 30-year-old man, named Wu Jiantong, was rushed to the hospital and was revived by doctors. Later, he slipped into a coma and is still in the Intensive Care Unit there. According to PCMag, that man was using a counterfeit or third-party charger to power-up his iPhone at the time. Apple has posted a charging guide on its Chinese website telling customers to only use Apple's official chargers. As per the most recent report of the Galaxy S4 causing a house fire, Samsung has yet to respond.
Click here for photos from the aftermath of the fire.