cell phone as a fire cause

[steelman]

has anyone had a fire caused by a cell phone? i believe i had my first one last night....LG Go Phone...looking for input....thanks in advance

[ADRadio]

First, a disclaimer - I'm not a firefighter or investigator, I just browse this site occasionally out of general interest.

I am, however, an Electrical Engineer. So provided that I'm not overstepping I might suggest the following - you probably already thought of these, but since nobody had replied yet I thought I would offer my 2 cents.

Batteries in portable electronics contain a decent amount of energy. Modern batteries contain current limiting devices to protect them in the event of a short circuit or malfunction. However, counterfeit and generic replacement batteries (and chargers) do not necessarily have these features. You might want to do a search on the Consumer Products Safety Commission website (www.cpsc.gov) for LG phones - I did a quick one and lo-and-behold there were some reports of counterfeit batteries involved with overheating and fire incidents.

So I might suggest asking the phone owner some detailed questions about that phone's history (and it's batteries and charger). Be aware that purchasing replacement batteries might not be a memorable event in somebody's life.

I would also suggest that if you come to suspect the phone that you consider finding a forensic engineer to check it out. They may be able to determine if there are problems with the battery or circuitry even if it's been pretty badly damaged. Perhaps the insurance company could hire one.

I hope that was useful.

Cheers,

-A

[cubbie]

has anyone had a fire caused by a cell phone? i believe i had my first one last night....LG Go Phone...looking for input....thanks in advance

Yes I have seen one. Battery exploded and fire self extinguished.

[nmfire]

We should very carefully be distinguishing whether a fire was caused by a phone or caused by the battery in the phone. I think the battery is the more likely suspect if anything.

[Shamu2]

Well last summer our fire marshall ruled that a cell phone plugged into it's charger was the cause of a goof room and contents fire in a townhome. Appeared to have overheated and caught fire sitting there.

[Giovanni012]

I would not be surprised that a charger can overheat and start a fire, while speaking of th simple and plain cell phone I would consider the battery as a potential problem source, unless we are talking of ignition a flammable gas/vapor cloud, for which every not specific standard compliant electrical apparatus can be an ignition source. In europe the code standard, for industrial envirnment, is colled Atex.