Luke Abraham of Orland Park assumed his daughter’s hoverboard missed its anticipated Christmas delivery date by six weeks because the South Korean manufacturer had been addressing reported problems it was having with the batteries for the devices.
On Sunday afternoon, just days after its arrival at the family’s home in the 17200 block of Deer Trail, the hoverboard exploded while being charged.
“I never thought it would be like a firecracker,” Abraham said. “I tried to take it out, and it exploded again.”
The Orland Fire Protection District, in a release, said, “Shortly after it was plugged in, there were several explosions that shot burning pieces of the hoverboard across the room.”
Abraham said his wife, Lallu, burned her hand in the incident.
“She’s hurting a little bit, but she’s OK,” he said.
The Smart Balance Wheel hoverboard arrived Feb. 9, and Abraham said his 13-year-old daughter Shanna rode it around the neighborhood for a few days.
“It was OK for three, four days,” he said.
Then, it apparently turned into some kind of portable pyrotechnic display.
The Orland Fire Prevention District responded to Shanna’s 911 call, and damage was limited to a slight burn on the couch and a charred three-foot-square area on a hardwood floor.
A district battalion chief determined that the hoverboard was the cause of the fire, the town release said. The Abrahams reported that they were having problems charging the hoverboard since its delivery.
Last month, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said it was investigating 39 hoverboard fires in 19 states, up from 12 incidents reported in December.
The commission was focusing its investigation on the lithium-ion batteries that power the boards and, “their interaction with the circuit boards inside the units,” according to a statement from commission Chairman Elliot F. Kaye. The commission has said poorly designed batteries can overheat and are prone to explosion.
In an advisory, the commission urged consumers to “have a working fire extinguisher nearby while charging or using these boards in and around your home.” It also advised people to charge the boards “in an open area away from combustible materials.”
Abraham purchased the device through Amazon.com, which is refunding money to people who purchased the hoverboards.
Asked if he and his family will give hoverboards a second chance, Abraham said with a laugh, “No. I’m never going to buy another one.”
Dennis Sullivan is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
