TOKYO - A fire broke out in an apartment building in Suginami, Tokyo, shortly before 2 a.m. on September 25th, after a mobile battery being used to charge a smartphone caught fire, leaving six people hospitalized for smoke inhalation and other injuries.
Footage from around 1:40 a.m. showed flames shooting from the five-story building as firefighters prepared to extinguish the blaze. The fire is believed to have started in a second-floor unit, where heavy flames and thick white smoke were seen billowing out.
The blaze burned through about 20 square meters of one room on the second floor before being put out roughly two hours later. Among those taken to hospital was a teenage girl who lived in the unit.
According to police, the resident of the room told investigators: "I was sleeping while charging my smartphone with a mobile battery when I heard a bang, and saw the battery had caught fire."
So-called "mobile charging fires" have been increasing. In July, a similar fire occurred on the Yamanote Line, where the mobile battery involved was later found to be subject to a recall due to risk of ignition.
Commenting on the latest case, Masashi Ishikawa, professor at Kansai University’s Faculty of Chemistry and Materials Engineering, noted that defective or degraded batteries may have been the cause. He warned: "The risk is higher when a deteriorated mobile battery is close to 100 percent charge. The stored energy, instead of being used normally, can trigger combustion and other accidents."
Ishikawa also pointed out that some products lack proper safety mechanisms: "Well-made devices have protective circuits that sharply cut current once charging is complete. But in some recent products, those circuits may not be adequately designed."
He advises users never to leave batteries charging unattended or while away from home, stressing that charging should be done within sight to minimize risks.
Source: FNN
