COUSINS HEADS UP
Laptop Catches Fire, Injures Forest Woman
Posted: Jan 20, 2012 4:36 PM EST
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(
http://wset.images.worldnow.com/images/16566535_BG1.jpg) What Was Left
of Campbell's Laptop
Reporter: Rachel Schaerr | Videographer: Melinda Zosh
Forest, VA - A Forest woman got quite a surprise when she turned on her
laptop and it burst into flames.
Nationwide, at least eight people have been burned, one person treated for
smoke inhalation and 36 computers damaged since the latest recall. The
Consumer Product Safety Commission says the batteries in some HP and Compaq
computers can actually catch fire.
"It actually made a popping noise," said Lauren Campbell.
She remembers the evening of January 5 well.
"I turned around and before I knew it, it was in flames," she says of her
HP Pavilion laptop.
She threw the computer on her driveway. A few minutes later, she realized
her foot had second-degree burns.
"I'm not sure what landed on my foot. I could have been burned by battery
acid," she says.
More than 160,000 lithium-ion batteries used in HP and Compaq notebook
computers have been recalled since 2009 because they can overheat, rupture and
catch fire.
Campbell is just glad her 4-year-old daughter didn't have to learn the
hard way.
"The scary thing is she spent a lot of time on that computer," says
Campbell. "So those are the things that go through your mind -- the what ifs."
The Bedford County Fire Marshal wonders if a recalled battery also sparked
a house fire that killed a Moneta man in November.
"I remembered there was a laptop also in that immediate area, plugged into
an extension chord, right next to the bed," said John Jennings after
calling a news conference to make the public aware of the recall.
The Toshiba computer inside the home was too badly burned to find a serial
or model number, so he may never know for sure what started the blaze.
"I certainly have to allow for the possibility that it was a failure
involving the laptop that caused the fire that resulted in the fatality,"
Jennings said.
He's urging all laptop owners to unplug their computers when not in use,
keep them away from beds and carpets, and register their serial numbers on
the manufacturer's web site.
Campbell wishes she had.
"Type it in and see what comes up. You might be surprised," she said.
News Release From The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: