Authorities: Hoverboard explodes inside South Carolina home
MAULDIN, S.C. -- Authorities say a hoverboard has exploded inside a South Carolina home, causing a small fire but no injuries.
The Mauldin Fire Department tells local news outlets one of the popular toys exploded inside a home Tuesday afternoon.
Fire Department Lt. Christopher Walker says two teens at the home received hoverboards for Christmas. One teen had just finished charging his board when the batteries combusted and flew about 20 feet across the living room, lighting a chair on fire and burning the carpet.
Officials say no one was injured, and Walker says the fire caused no structural damage to the home.
This is not the first time a hoverboard has exploded. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has received 50 reports of injuries and fires associated with the devices, up from 40 reports as of Dec. 10, spokeswoman Patty Davis told CBS MoneyWatch on Dec. 15.
Injuries include sprains, fractures, lacerations, and abrasions, from falls, and though no one has died in the fires caused by the exploding batteries, at least a dozen fires have been caused by hoverboards.
The danger hoverboards present to the public has even reached England where Amazon said in December that officials expressed concerns that the lithium batteries, which overheat and explode, are not safe.
Because of the risk of explosion, airlines have placed hoverboards on the no-fly list
To mitigate the risk of explosion, officials recommend that hoverboard owners do not to bring the batteries to a full charge and also say owners should not charge the hoverboards overnight.
As of now, no recall has been issued.