Plane evacuated after replacement Samsung Note 7 fire
Southwest Airlines plane evacuated in the US when phone started smoking
The battery of a replacement Samsung Galaxy Note 7 forced a Southwest Airlines plane to be evacuated when it started smoking, triggering fears that the smartphone could cause an explosion.
The Verge news site has reported that Flight 994 from Louisville to Baltimore was rapidly evacuated, as the phone burned through the plane’s carpet and scorched its sub-floor.
Owner Brian Green was forced to drop Samsung’s flagship smartphone when “thick grey-green angry smoke” started pouring out of it.
The phone was a replacement issued to Green after Samsung was forced to globally recall the first batch of Galaxy Note 7 devices, when it received reports of the battery pack catching fire.
News of the replacement phone suffering from a similar problem will come as a massive blow to Samsung.
Some airlines are now warning passengers not to use the Note 7 when on-board – including Virgin Atlantic.
Samsung says it has recovered over 60 percent of its recalled Note 7 smartphones in South Korea and the US. A UK recall is well underway too, and Samsung has reportedly warned users of the phone in France that their devices could be “turned off”, if they don’t return them as part of the recall.