Apple Store in Zurich Evacuated Following Incident With Overheated iPhone Battery

[MacRumors]

The Apple retail store located on Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich, Switzerland was evacuated on Tuesday following a situation with an overheated iPhone battery and its injury of a repair worker (via Reuters and Swissinfo.ch). Zurich police said that the incident happened as the worker was removing the battery from the iPhone, subsequently overheating and "slightly" burning his hand.

It wasn't confirmed which iPhone was the source of the incident, but afterwards smoke began building up within the store, leading to the temporary evacuation of around 50 customers and employees from the premises. In addition to the repair worker, seven other people required medical attention but none were hospitalized.

The police mentioned that Apple staff responded quickly to the overheated battery by sprinkling quartz sand over it and containing the smoke as fast as possible.

“At the same time, there was a slight build-up of smoke, which led to around 50 customers and employees having to leave the business temporarily,” a police statement said.

“The staff responded well and correctly. It sprinkled quartz sand over the overheated battery so that the smoke could be contained and sucked out after switching on the ventilation.”

According to the police statement, forensic specialists are now examining what caused the incident in the first place, so no explanation was given at the time of writing. Apple has yet to comment on the situation.

Article Link: Apple Store in Zurich Evacuated Following Incident With Overheated iPhone Battery

 

[ArneK]

It's probably one of those high quality batteries that apple started using from iPhone 6 on...

 

[justperry]

Non story!

It's probably one of those high quality batteries that apple started using from iPhone 6 on...

Or maybe a third party battery.

 

[vertsix]

defective batteries are in every released smartphone model, but they are rarer on some

for batteries to become safety hazards is even more rare, such as this case

 

[Iam3rd]

No worries. By the end of the day Apple will offer a discount in their battery replacement program. Did anyone check for a degrading battery?

 

[quaresma]

Non story!






Or maybe a third party battery.

Third party battery in Apple Store? lol

 

[heimo]

Not the first time iPhone battery has caused unexpected premature shutdown.

 

[testcard]

Battery replacement programme now includes 12 months complimentary fire insurance.

 

[Kabeyun]

Remember the all-important phrase:

 

[sevvere]

Nothingburger

 

[H3LL5P4WN]

Third party battery in Apple Store? lol

The article doesn't state that the Genius was installing the battery. For all we know, the customer got a potato installed at a mall kiosk and the brought the phone it for issues relating to/unrelated to said potato.

 

[thebeans]

Third party battery in Apple Store? lol

Yes. The article said the incident occurred when the battery was being removed. It could have been a third party battery that was being replaced because it sucked hind tit. Also, the worker could have punctured the battery during the removal process. LiOn batteries really don’t like being punctured. Of course it could just be a coincidence that it started burning at the exact same time it was being removed.

 

[Bako-MacAddict]

Lawsuit coming in one ... two .... and

 

[evangw]

Lawsuit coming in one ... two .... and

In Switzerland? Not too likely.

 

[mikethemartian]

I wonder if the worker accidentally shorted the battery when taking it out.

 

[Cordorb]

I saw a Car battery being replaced once and the dealer shorted the cables and started a small fire.

odd that this did not make the news

 

[justperry]

Not the first time iPhone battery has caused unexpected premature shutdown.

This doesn't make any sense, iPhones are off when worked on.

And yes, I get the not so funny joke/meme.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

I saw a Car battery being replaced once and the dealer shorted the cables and started a small fire.

odd that this did not make the news

It may have if by "the news" you meant a website dedicated to that brand of car.

 

[ignatius345]

Lithium-ion batteries are pretty terrifying. Look up one of those "laptop on fire" videos sometime. Once that reaction starts and all that chemical energy gets released, it's insane. Whatever the replacement for lithium-ion batteries is, it just can't come soon enough.

 

[justperry]

It may have if by "the news" you meant a website dedicated to that brand of car.

Very likely if it happened to a ferrari, not so much if it's a Kia.

 

[koulmj]

This one battery incident is it just a battery incident. It means the most valuable company in the world worth less than before. Also, your phines are not as reliable. And don’t forget that your education is less meaningful and your family doesn’t care about you like they did before.

 

[justperry]

Lithium-ion batteries are pretty terrifying. Look up one of those "laptop on fire" videos sometime. Once that reaction starts and all that chemical energy gets released, it's insane. Whatever the replacement for lithium-ion batteries is, it just can't come soon enough.

A decent Laptop battery is 60 Watts or (much) more, release that amount of energy in seconds (<½ a minute) and you know what you get.

 

[itsmilo]

The article doesn't state that the Genius was installing the battery. For all we know, the customer got a potato installed at a mall kiosk and the brought the phone it for issues relating to/unrelated to said potato.

Doesnt a 3rd party battery void the warranty? I doubt they would replace a battery if you messed with it yourself. I am sure there is a way for them to tell before opening up the phone. Some kind of marker

 

[44267547]

odd that this did not make the news

If it's Apple related, it's likely overblown as it is. If this was Another Company that this occurred with, it might be a sub-headline on Yahoo news.

 

[macintoshi]

The Apple retail store located on Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich, Switzerland was evacuated on Tuesday following a situation with an overheated iPhone battery and its injury of a repair worker (via Reuters and Swissinfo.ch). Zurich police said that the incident happened as the worker was removing the battery from the iPhone, subsequently overheating and "slightly" burning his hand.

It wasn't confirmed which iPhone was the source of the incident, but afterwards smoke began building up within the store, leading to the temporary evacuation of around 50 customers and employees from the premises. In addition to the repair worker, seven other people required medical attention but none were hospitalized.

The police mentioned that Apple staff responded quickly to the overheated battery by sprinkling quartz sand over it and containing the smoke as fast as possible.
According to the police statement, forensic specialists are now examining what caused the incident in the first place, so no explanation was given at the time of writing. Apple has yet to comment on the situation.

Article Link: Apple Store in Zurich Evacuated Following Incident With Overheated iPhone Battery

Lol i hope it was an iphone x, nah it was surely not a third party battery and no it was not worked on, cause it was infront were the selling ones are. I know the shop, cause i shop there!