Samsung’s explosive reputation could be flaring up again, based on a new report that the company’s smartphone caused one woman’s car to catch fire and explode.
The Detroit woman says she was driving in her car with a Samsung Galaxy S4 and Galaxy S8 in her cupholders when suddenly one of the devices burst into flame. It took just a few minutes for the fire to completely destroy her car, and she says she’s lucky to be alive.
Look at the damage:
“I was driving down Evergreen. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a spark,” said the woman in an interview with local news. The incident happened on the morning of May 21st. Firefighters that spoke to the local news provided evidence that a Samsung smartphone was indeed the source of the explosion.
Samsung phones have been known to spontaneously combust in the past. In 2016, Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 had to be recalled due to its tendency to erupt into flame. All Galaxy Note 7 phones were subsequently recalled.
It’s unclear whether the Galaxy S4 or S8 was the culprit for starting a fire. Neither of the two is listed on any recall lists, and there hasn’t been a growing trend of them exploding.
Samsung reportedly sent out a team to investigate the car. It also had engineers check out the piece of the phone that started the blaze. The owner of the vehicle is launching a lawsuit against the company. Samsung hasn’t said whether it is investigating whether the issue could be more widespread, but it did release the following statement:
“While we don’t comment on pending litigation, we stand behind the safety of the millions of Samsung phones in the United States.”
Buster Hein is a freelance writer who lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Twitter: @bst3r.
