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Up in smoke: E-cigarette explodes in man's mouth
Source: Agencies |
February 17, 2012, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
AN American man trying to kick the smoking habit was puffing on an electronic cigarette when a faulty battery caused it to explode in his mouth, taking out some of his front teeth and a chunk of his tongue and severely burning his face.
"The best analogy is like it was trying to hold a bottle rocket in your mouth when it went off," Joseph Parker, division chief for the North Bay Fire Department in Florida, said on Wednesday. "The battery flew out of the tube and set the closet on fire."
Officials have not publicly identified him, citing fire department policy. But a Facebook page under the name of Tom Holloway was filled with well-wishers commenting on the injury and database searches matched his address on the fire report with his name.
Holloway, 57, was in his office at home when the device exploded, leaving behind burned chair cushions, pictures, carpet and office equipment. A scorched battery case found on a piece of melted carpet appears to be one for a cigar-sized device, the report said.
Investigators do not know the brand of cigarette, type of battery or age of the device, Parker said.
Thomas Kiklas, co-founder of the Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association, said the industry knows of no problems with the cigarettes or batteries exploding. He said the rigid, plastic cigarettes include a small battery and cartridge. The battery is designed to generate an electric charge when the device is inhaled. The charge sets off vapor in the cigarette tube. The nicotine-filled mist gives the taste and experience of smoking without the smoke.
The industry does not claim electronic cigarettes allow smokers to kick the habit, just that they are a healthier alternative to cigarettes because they have fewer chemicals, he said.
"The best analogy is like it was trying to hold a bottle rocket in your mouth when it went off," Joseph Parker, division chief for the North Bay Fire Department in Florida, said on Wednesday. "The battery flew out of the tube and set the closet on fire."
Officials have not publicly identified him, citing fire department policy. But a Facebook page under the name of Tom Holloway was filled with well-wishers commenting on the injury and database searches matched his address on the fire report with his name.
Holloway, 57, was in his office at home when the device exploded, leaving behind burned chair cushions, pictures, carpet and office equipment. A scorched battery case found on a piece of melted carpet appears to be one for a cigar-sized device, the report said.
Investigators do not know the brand of cigarette, type of battery or age of the device, Parker said.
Thomas Kiklas, co-founder of the Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association, said the industry knows of no problems with the cigarettes or batteries exploding. He said the rigid, plastic cigarettes include a small battery and cartridge. The battery is designed to generate an electric charge when the device is inhaled. The charge sets off vapor in the cigarette tube. The nicotine-filled mist gives the taste and experience of smoking without the smoke.
The industry does not claim electronic cigarettes allow smokers to kick the habit, just that they are a healthier alternative to cigarettes because they have fewer chemicals, he said.
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