A Haines City family nearly lost their apartment in a fire that officials believe started when a hover board burst into flames while charging.
The fire started Saturday afternoon, and luckily the family was around to call for help.
“My son, he left the hover board he had charging and I think it exploded,” the mother is heard telling a 9-1-1 dispatcher in a frantic call released Monday.
According to the family’s statements to investigators, they had just plugged the device in to charge.
Firefighters arrived in time to save the house, but the device was charred to a crisp.
“It was mostly smoking and smoldering,” said Stuart McCutcheon, Chief at Haines City Fire.
Ever since the hover boards became the tech fad of 2015, stories have popped up around the country of them suddenly bursting into flames.
Most major airlines have since banned the device and fire officials urge families to use caution.
“If you’re going to own one of these and use them, then obviously you’re going to have to charge it,” McCutcheon said. “Charge it outdoors and have someone out there watching it.”
His best advice: don’t leave it charging overnight and unattended.
In this case, everyone got out safely and the apartment can be repaired.
