E-CIGARETTE EXPLODE, KILLING SMOKER IN MALAYSIAN BORNEO

BINTULU, Sarawak, Malaysia -  Smoking definitely kills, as a 53-year-old van driver died from an explosion after his electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) device suddenly blew up at Bintulu Tamu (Market) yesterday.

The victim, who was only identified only as ‘Lau’ (at press-time), was walking with a friend to a coffee shop when the freak incident happened.

They were heading for a coffee break as Lau was waiting for customers for his chartered van.

It is believed that the battery of the e-cigarette exploded, taking into account that it popped out from the device during the explosion.

The force of the explosion struck Lau in the chest, causing him to collapse.

The friend, who was shocked, said he tried to help Lau and discovered a hole with burnt marks on Lau’s chest.

• He said Lau did not die instantly as his eyes were wide open when his name was called out. However, he believed that Lau must have passed out before his demise.
• Startled members of the public at the market offered help by calling up an ambulance from Bintulu Hospital, as well as police who rushed to the scene.
• When paramedics arrived, they pronounced  Lau dead.
• The root cause of Lau’s death was still being investigated, pending a post-mortem.

Last August,  62-year-old man in Wallasey, Merseyside, England has died after his e-cigarette exploded into flames and ignited a home oxygen machine he is believed to have been using.
A precise cause of death is yet to be established but an investigation by the fire service found that an e-cigarette charging in the bedroom exploded, igniting the tube of an oxygen concentrator.

Source: The Borneo Post, The Times