Friday 9 September 2016

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 phone ignited fire while on charge and torched down family car in US

A Florida father has been left devastated after his brand new Samsung Galaxy Note 7 burst into flames and torched his family car.

Nathan Dornacher, from St Petersburg, Florida, said he was charging the phone inside his custom Jeep Grand Cherokee when it caught fire, burning both to a crisp.

Samsung have issued a worldwide recall for the Note7, saying problems with the battery can cause it to explode or catch fire.

While fire officials have not said whether that was the cause behind this fire, Dornacher told Fox 13 News that the blaze started around the charging phone.

The father-of-one said he had not heard about the recall, which was issued just five days before the fire broke out.

Posting pictures of the blaze on Facebook, he said: 'We went to a garage sale to grab a desk for my daughter, got back to the house and unloaded the car.

'I left it running with the AC on to keep the car cool as we were planning on grabbing the dog and heading to Petco.

'I went back out to the car to grab my phone which was on the charger (me and Lydia always fight over the house charger), went to open the door and saw flames inside.

'I opened the door and the car is engulfed. I ran inside to get extinguisher and of course it's not to be found. I yelled at Lydia to call Fire Department and here is the end result.'

While Dorancher says the basic cost of the vehicle was insured, he said that will not cover the thousands of dollars worth of upgrades he made to the car.

On top of that, the family are also missing their main means of transportation until the claim is settled.

However, Dorancher says he is grateful the incident was not worse because his eight-year daughter often uses the phone.

Samsung say they are aware of Dorancher's case, are investigating the cause of the fire, and say they are providing assistance to the family.

In a subsequent update, Dorancher said Samsung have sent a representative to investigate, and that all of his family are doing OK.

He added that the family are not seeking damages from the incident, and are trying to promote the recall to stop other from being hurt.

Samsung has suspended global sales of the Note 7, which was unveiled last month, due to a 'battery cell issue', and issued a recall notice for all handset already sold.

The company said: 'For customers who already have Galaxy Note7 devices, we will voluntarily replace their current device with a new one over the coming weeks.

'We acknowledge the inconvenience this may cause in the market but this is to ensure that Samsung continues to deliver the highest quality products to our customers. 

'We are working closely with our partners to ensure the replacement experience is as convenient and efficient as possible.' 


Family car torched down by fire ignited from Samsung Galaxy Note7 device

Fire fighter cool down the flames but damage was done.
Remains of the Samsung Galaxy Note7 device after the fire.
Samsung Galaxy Note7 phone widely distributed by Digicel. 
Source: Daily Mail - UK (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news)

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