An Apple iPhone blows up in Sydney after biker falls off his bike

A biker in Sydney got the shock of his life when his iPhone blew up after he fell off his bike. The resultant heat melted his biking shorts and fused the iPhone to his leg, forcing him to punch it off with his fists. The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Gareth Clear was riding his bike over Many Dam on 31 July, when his foot missed the pedal and he fell. When he got up, he noticed an “incredible plume of smoke” coming from his rear and then felt a “searing pain.” “Freaking painful,” were the words he used. A word of caution for those who follow that link, the images are quite graphic. The phone had melted his shorts and stuck to his leg. He claimed that he then burnt his fingers trying to remove the device and finally had to punch it off. Clear was alone on the dam and, for fear of the phone injuring someone else, waited 20 minutes till it cooled down and then picked it up with two pieces of wood (it was still hot). It took him around 30 minutes to get to the city and get to a hospital. The doctors discovered that he suffered third-degree burns and needed a skin graft to repair the damage. Apple has reportedly been in touch with him to understand what happened, but has apparently refused to comment on the situation. Calling it a “tragedy waiting to happen” and the iPhone a “mini-bomb,” Clear added that what happened to him could happen to anyone as every iPhone is essentially identical. He’s going to get back to biking as soon as he can, but the iPhone isn’t going to stay in his pocket. Only recently, a Xiaomi Mi 4i belonging to Ajay Raj Negi caught fire while it was being charged. Why do batteries blow up? Most smartphone batteries in use today contain lithium, which is extremely volatile and reactive metal. Even a tiny bit of moisture can cause a violent reaction. Excessive heat generated by overcharging can cause a battery to explode by a process called thermal runaway.

Lithium also reacts very violently when it encounters moisture. A punctured battery will react to the moisture in the air and blow up.

Don’t panic and start throwing up all your lithium-ion batteries, however. These batteries are generally very safe and of the billions of phones, power banks and other devices sold so far, we’ve only ever heard of a handful of battery issues. The chances of your battery blowing up are very slim indeed. Devices usually incorporate a great many protection mechanisms to ensure that a battery is not overcharged and even the battery skin is very sturdy. That said, it doesn’t hurt to be careful. What is a third-degree burn? [caption id=“attachment_328124” align=“aligncenter” width=“458”]  Image: Healthwise incorporated[/caption] Your skin is made up of three layers, the outermost epidermis, the dermis and subcutaneous tissue. A first-degree burn is only a mild burn on the outermost layer of skin, without blistering. A second-degree burn extends to the epidermis and dermis. A third-degree burn extends through the entire layer of skin and usually includes nerve damage. These burns can take months to heal and severe scarring, at the very least, is a given. Fourth-degree burns are even worse and can extend all the way down to the bone.