Apple Pledges Investigation After Chinese Woman Reportedly Electrocuted Using a Charging iPhone 5

[FloatingBones]

Seriously? It's plugged into a receptacle it's full power being transformed to lower power. Either the transformer was bypassed by water, or water ran down the wire directly into the receptacle. Using any powered device while wet/in shower etc. is ill advised, especially without a GFCI, which in the US is code in all wet locations.

he was being sarcastic...

The post that he was responding to had no external indication the comment was sarcastic. Many participants here do not read English as a native language. Consider: in a conversation about the death of a person, any sort of sarcasm like that is dreadfully inappropriate.

@NachoGrande's advice is very good. Use a GFCI outlet. Better yet, get one or two of the NewerTech Power2U outlets installed in your house. They're cheap and your odds of dealing with anything but the 5VDC are greatly reduced. And, if you put those outlets in a wet place, make sure to have a GFCI on the circuit. The only problem with the Power2U units is that (I'm guessing) they ran out of real estate to have an integrated GFCI. These are not your father's AC outlets.

FUN FACT!! Electrical discharge (shock) from static electricity can be anywhere from 20,000 to 25,000 volts. So obviously voltage has nothing to do with what can kill you.

Not really. As this video notes, the amount of current in a circuit is linearly related to the voltage. "Voltage has nothing to do with what can kill you" demonstrates a lack of understanding about electricity. I always practice safety protocols when dealing with electricity, even when I "know" that there is no danger from the source. IMHO, it's time to stop repeating this dubious "fun fact".

 

[ChrisA]

Unless you're in an upscale hotel with specially designed bathrooms or live in a country where this is common, I've never seen anyone's home (including my own) with a shower designed this way with drainage in the middle of the floor.

It is a common kind of cheap construction. I stayed in a low-end Korean hotel in a rural area, they just used one floor drain for shower and the sink. The floor was angled so the water would run to one end. Americans see this as "shoddy construction" or a building code violation, the locals saw it as "the way it's done here." The better hotels in the city have the kind of plumbing we are used to in the US with each fixture having it's own drain, a "U" trap and a roof vent. All those parts add cost. In some of the cheap places you don't even know if the shoer drain goes down a pipe, could just run off to the street. Not al the world has modern plumbing systems and some of these rural building are 50 or 60 years old

 

[HenryDJP]

The OP is suggesting that this woman deserved to die through natural selection because she was obviously so stupid. We don't know the full facts here and we don't know if she was to blame or if it was a faulty device, etc. However that is immaterial, like some else said earlier show some respect someone died here.

Oh my, I didn't get that from the post. I just thought he/she was simply saying if you misuse a product and something happens then you can't complain. I didn't take it that they meant the person deserved to die.

 

[mlenger]

AC vs DC

Actually, AC is more dangerous in regards to muscle seizing. Weird as this might sound, a DC current will force your muscles to jerk before it seizes up, which means you could possibly drop or knock yourself away from whatever's electrocuting you. AC forces contractions, which means you're more likely to grip whatever you're holding onto harder.

Hell, everything about this story is freakishly weird.

Wow - this must be a newer finding. We where told during my Physics study DC is the MUCH more dangerous one, especially to to the blood electrolysis. We worked on very high power laser systems with about 500 V DC and 5 kA so I guess anything will kill you at that level.
In any case it takes ~ 50ma trough the heart to kill you instantly, so yes USB power is doable if it is connected to to electrodes that lead to the heart, other than that - no way - the shin resistance at that low of a voltage will not allow a sufficient current through the heart.
You are right- everything in this story is weird.
Could a USB cable deliver a current sufficient to electrocute under the right circumstances? (wet feet on concrete)
Maybe the shielding cut maintain it long enough before it melts- arches through- and short circuits. All this of course needs a faulty charger.

 

[CFreymarc]

hmmm, the output voltage on an iPhone charger is too low to do more than a slight shock. Could they have bought it in one of those knock off apple shops? or even a dodgy plug?

That is what I'm thinking. There are so many knock offs of the cube style iPhone USB port re-chargers, who knows who made it. Reminds me of these laptops that blew up a few years ago. All were found to have used defective third party batteries that were cheaper than the manufacturer or manufacturer approved versions.

 

[BeingHuman]

What happens in China, Stays in China!

BTW, I will never pick a call on charging. Someone has to test

 

[pixelshaders]

The only way a charging iphone can kill a person is problem on the charger cause live 220v AC power conducted from the charger via charging cable to the iphone 5's metal case to the person.

 

[Dave00]

The whole story doesn't make sense on the face of it. In order for her to be electrocuted by just handling the phone, you would require a large amount of current to bypass the transformer in the charger, successfully travel down a thin wire without causing it to melt, travel through the phone itself, and then make a circuit through the victim's body that included the heart, which would require some other part of the body to be touching a ground.

As we say in medicine - common things are common. A more likely scenario is that the wet victim touched the outlet.

 

[Ryth]

There has to be some extenuating circumstance in this situation. The output on an iPhone 5 charger is not that high...

On a side note, as sad as this tragedy is, I'm glad to see the correct use of the term "Electrocuted", too may people say that when they meant to say "shocked". Nobody will ever be able to say "I got electrocuted..." It's not possible.

Supposedly she had just gotten out of the bath tub. Supposedly the phone was being charged IN THE BATHROOM.

The family told @Stewardess network that she had left a bath to answer a call.

If these are accurate, there is the missing information that was probably left out intentionally to black eye Apple.

 

[Murphintosh]

"...when she was electrocuted and killed."

Redundant. Electrocuted means killed, not just shocked. It's like saying - The prisoner was executed and killed.

 

[Oletros]

Wow - this must be a newer finding. We where told during my Physics study DC is the MUCH more dangerous one, especially to to the blood electrolysis.

Yap, we also were told that in our Physics study. Our teacher joked that he could kill us with a button battery and two needles

 

[Murphintosh]

Details of the incident are somewhat sketchy? Well that's not...

...

shocking.

EDIT: Apologies to those who've been offended by my comment; I'll admit I wrote this before reading about the lady's death.

Electrocuted is right there in the headline. That means death.

 

[bchery21]

Electrocuted is right there in the headline. That means death.

You're right

 

[Renzatic]

Wow - this must be a newer finding. We where told during my Physics study DC is the MUCH more dangerous one, especially to to the blood electrolysis.

In a "you're getting electrocuted, and here's how" situation, DC is much, much worse. I'm talking about a situation where you accidentally grab a live wire, you're more likely to survive if it's DC, because your muscles tend to give a spastic jerk before locking, causing you to (hopefully) drop or throw yourself away from whatever is shocking you. With AC, you don't get that jerk, just the muscle paralysis.

You think it'd be the opposite, but that's apparently what it does.

We worked on very high power laser systems with about 500 V DC and 5 kA so I guess anything will kill you at that level.
In any case it takes ~ 50ma trough the heart to kill you instantly, so yes USB power is doable if it is connected to to electrodes that lead to the heart, other than that - no way - the shin resistance at that low of a voltage will not allow a sufficient current through the heart.

Actually, it only takes 10mA delivered directly to the heart to kill you. But like someone said above, skin isn't a very good conductor by itself, so it takes a good deal more to actually kill you. Under normal circumstances, it takes upwards of 100-200mA to do you in (which is a helluva lot less than what I initially thought).

You are right- everything in this story is weird.
Could a USB cable deliver a current sufficient to electrocute under the right circumstances? (wet feet on concrete)
Maybe the shielding cut maintain it long enough before it melts- arches through- and short circuits. All this of course needs a faulty charger.

I don't think there's any one thing to blame here. It's just such a freakish thing to happen, you can't help but wonder what the hell went on.

I think a frayed USB cable could kill you if you were wet, you actually gripped it in your hand, and were grounded to something on the opposite side of your body so it'd complete a circuit across your chest.

Electricity and how it works isn't exactly my area of expertise, but I know enough to make semi-educated guesses. To me, if the iPhone were responsible, it would've probably damaged it a lot worse than what we saw in those shots on the previous page. If it were due to cheap knock off components attached to the AC, then what would've probably happened would've been a power surge, which wouldn't have electrocuted her, but instead caught her hair on fire because the battery exploded from being overloaded. One thing's for sure, she wouldn't have had a working phone afterwards.

If it were the iPhone itself, like a bad charging port that somehow connected to antenna, then the sudden power surge probably would've shorted out and damaged the hardware inside the phone. And that's assuming there'd be enough power transferred through the USB block, the wire, the port, and the antenna to electrocute someone. Either way, the phone probably wouldn't work after that.

That one guy who said the phone was probably acting as the ground rather than the source is really the only thing that makes sense to me. And even then it's only in a "meh...maybe" sorta way. If that's the case, who knows what actually happened.

 

[smithrh]

"...when she was electrocuted and killed."

Redundant. Electrocuted means killed, not just shocked. It's like saying - The prisoner was executed and killed.

To be a bit pedantic - could you not be electrocuted - "triple zero" or PNB, and be resuscitated and live?

TIL that electrocution is actually a portmanteau of "electric execution."

 

[jread]

You immediately jump into the discussion, but you couldn't even be troubled to read the entire article (all 200-words worth), now could you?

Actually, I did read the article. It was claimed that it was an official Apple charger, but that has not been verified yet.

 

[fedup flyer]

Unless you're in an upscale hotel with specially designed bathrooms or live in a country where this is common, I've never seen anyone's home (including my own) with a shower designed this way with drainage in the middle of the floor.

Having a drain in the middle of the floor is very common in Asia.
Drives me nuts in certain hotels where I leave clothes on the bathroom floor and then take a shower.

 

[ponybro]

I'm from China. The girl does have an official charger, but HK version, with 3-pins. The charger for mainland is with 2-pins. So, usually a 2-to-3 adapter plug will be used between the outlet and the charger. This is just the case.

It is suspected that it is a knock-off adapter plug, possibly, the killer.
There is a saying that it is possible that the live wire in the adapter somehow is connected to the earth wire of the charger, and the earth wire of the charge might be connects the the phone shell.

One of the proof is that after the accident, the iPhone could still be started successfully, which indicates no serious internal damage. The AC power might just go through the shell.

It is an iPhone 4, not 5. There is a video, in Chinese, but very informative.
http://news.cntv.cn/2013/07/15/VIDE1373868602328712.shtml


The girl is only 23 years old, a flight attendant, soon to be married... RIP.

Sorry for poor English...

 

[samcraig]

Apple daily is a known HK tabloid. No reason to believe everyhting you read in the tabloids.

Same thing goes for random posters on the internet. See what I did there?

 

[Big-TDI-Guy]

Well, I'm a certified Electrotechnical Engineer and If my word is worth anything, I would say:

a) It's physically impossible that the wires of a USB charger can be used to electrocute a baby human even. They lack the diameter necessary to carry enough current to kill. (considering c)

b) It's 99,99999% unlikely that the charger Apple uses would delivery an AC voltage, and an AC voltage in the magnitude that could kill.

c) The wires are too close in the cable to make an electrical arc through a human body. Even you connect a high tension to a Lightning cable, all you would get would be and electrical arc between the + and the -, and then, it will burn the wires, causing them to fall on the ground.

d) The PCB would burn if such a high voltage and high current would be passing.



DC current is safe no matter what, in fact, the electric chair was invented by Thomas Edison to promote his DC electric distribution system in detriment of the better AC that Westinghouse was using.

An electroTECHNICAL engineer? Well, that goes a long way in explaining how wrong you are on EVERY count here.

A: By your logic, all lightening strikes should be completely harmless, right? I mean there is ZERO wire diameter in most lightening.

B: Google: "Switching Supply Failure Modes", "Statistical Failure Rates", "Mass Manufacturing Quality Control", "Environmental Variables", "End-User Variables".

C: If you did actually look up "Switching Supply Failure Modes" you would realize that one failure mode results in THE ENTIRE LINE VOLTAGE PASSING THROUGH TO DC / SECONDARY LEG. Translation: You're connected directly to whatever is coming out of the wall outlet. Oh, the iPhone has a metal exterior - that it uses as an antenna? Oh, most everywhere line voltage has a reference to earth ground. Wait, humans stand on the ground, AND can hold things? I wonder, what could the odds be...

D: Metal iPhone, Ground Shields, Failure of Switching Supply - Electrifies the "Ground Shield" and results in the skin / exterior of the phone going "hot" - PCBs inside could care less, as they are "within" a Faraday cage. Just like how you'd be safe inside a steel cage, that was struck by lightning. Again, just Google.

DC can KILL. I've got capacitors for how power lasers that have "THE ENERGY STORED WITHIN THESE CAPACITORS IS LETHAL - ALWAYS VERIFY CAPS ARE FULLY DISCHARGED AND SHORT LEADS BEFORE HANDLING" That label was not there from the beginning... however after 2 people died from touching these caps, they had to label them. As far as I'm aware - there is not a capacitor on earth that stores AC...

Whatever licensing body certified you - should reconsider what they've done.

Finally - all the obligatory "Volts don't Kill, Amps do" statements - you're both wrong. POWER kills. 1,000,000 volts with near zero currently has not killed me, likely won't even bother you, either. But, battery banks providing THOUSANDS of amps, ALSO do not kill me, nor does it kill every tow truck operator who's provided a jump start. And I was holding buss bars with wet hands! Imagine that? You need a combination of Volts AND Amps to become dangerous - and the ratio of the two varies depending on body mass, location, conditions (humidity, salinity, ect...) Humans are not perfect conductors, we're actually terrible conductors, as it takes upwards of 40 volts for you to start passing anything significant through your skin.

Ok, sorry, end of rant.

 

[davidjearly]

First: is this a common occurance or freak one-off story on a slow news day in the middle of summer?

If it's a common occurance where are the other reports and why haven't they been publicized? And why hasn't a recall been ordered. Of course we know why. It's because…

it is a one-off Ripley's Believe It Or Not story (or maybe CSI). The iPhone is far too popular a phone and Apple is more scrutinized now than a Sport's Illustrated Swimsuit issue in a middle school locker room in 1984.

First, this is a tragic story to read and sickening that someone has lost their life whilst going through their normal day.

Normally, I'd agree with you, but my recent own experience with Apple power adapters leaves me questioning it more than usual.

My own experience is with my MacBook Pro and the Magsafe adapter. Let me preface this by saying that I have been using Apple computers and mobile devices over the past 10 years, and whilst I'm no electrical engineer, I know the basics of safe use.

Back in February, my MagSafe was connected to my MacBook Pro, which was 100% charged, and I started running the computer off power. It was sitting on a portable laptop table and the adapter sitting on a firm sofa in a normal temperature room, completely unexposed. I proceeded to change position on the sofa, and picked up the adapter to move it to the floor. Instantly, a reflex was triggered causing me to drop the adapter because it was dangerously hot. It had been connected to power for less than 10 minutes and I was only reading some articles in Safari. Moreover, it had caused damage to my property, which was visibly burned by the adapter (see picture).

I subsequently contacted Apple to report this and the matter was referred to executive relations. I the gave them 5 months to examine the faulty adapter, whilst being very patient in the process and going long periods without any updates. Apple finally got back to me a couple of weeks ago to state the adapter is working normally and they won't be held responsible for the potential threat to myself nor the actual damage to my property. I am currently exploring legal options to dispute this under consumer law.

Long story short - don't trust these power adapters and never leave them unattended whilst in use. Not that I ever have, but I would never dream of leaving any of my Apple (or non-Apple) devices connected to power overnight.

So, I can empathise with this woman and don't automatically think Apple are infallible just because I like their products.

 

[Konrad9]

I think you'll find it's natural selection at play here...

Anyone using a phone plugged in, whilst they take a shower, shouldn't really have any complaint

The word shower is not mentioned in either of those articles.

And before you quote CNN, remember they also announced the arrest of the (singular) Boston Marathon bomber before the suspects were even identified.

 

[macs4nw]

The Next Web summarizes a series of reports from out of China relating an incident in which a 23-year-old Chinese woman was allegedly electrocuted while answering a call on her iPhone 5 as it was plugged in and charging. Details on the incident are somewhat sketchy, but the woman's family insists that the iPhone was purchased from Apple in December and that the woman was using Apple's official charger at the time of the incident.

Article Link: Apple Pledges Investigation After Chinese Woman Reportedly Electrocuted Using a Charging iPhone 5

Sad for the family, and definitely a tough case for APPLE. Can they ever get to the truth about what really happened?

 

[PracticalMac]

MILLIONS and MILLIONS of iPhone's (and iPads) sold, and that's just the iP5, and only now someone is shocked to death? (condolences if true)

Then the cable is not exactly that long. Usually power receptacles are placed far from showers for a reason (granted, not always).

Finally, at 5v and 1amp (still 1 amp?), while it could kill, it would have to be plugged right into the heart. It is not like wall power which can be (in US) 110 Volt at 10~15 Amp, several magnitudes more power. Isolation is built in to all but eradicate any chance of shorting (while caps can lose insulation, it takes years to happen)


While it needs investigation, it is highly, highly, suspicious.

This is not the first time China as accused another country for something (Japan is by far a favorite target), only to discover in end it was some home-grown device or food that killed somebody.
China is worse then Nigeria in corruption, cheating, and name calling, much to the detriment of the honest hard working majority.

 

[lilo777]

This would never happen to Samsung phone

Because of "cheap" plastic cases this probably could not happen to Samsung phone. By the mood of some posters in this thread it looks like they think that one dead woman is small price to pay for "premium" feel of the iPhone.