MacBook pro in fire

[iKor]

My MacBook pro was in a fire and it was in the living room where smoke covered everything. Do you think I should try turning it on?

 

[Raunien]

There would probably be no harm in trying to it on. Whether it will actually turn on is a different story. If it was exposed to high heat for an extended amount of time, it could be dead :/. I'm sorry you had to go through that. My condolences.

 

[iKor]

Thank you. If it's dead do you think there's anyway to save the data or hard drive?

 

[Raunien]

The data might be recoverable, depending on what model MBP you have (classic or retina).

If it is a classic MBP (before 2012), then you simply have to pull out the harddrive and connect via sata to another computer to see if the data is able to be read.

If it is a retina MBP, you might have a little more difficulty, but pull out the SSD blade and buy an external enclosure for it (one that you can connect via usb or thunderbolt).

 

[alex0002]

How much smoke was there and did it reach the internals of the macbook pro?

If you do some searches on fire/smoke damage you might find articles that state that soot/smoke deposits can be conductive and corrosive.

The safe option would be asking your insurance company first. If you turn it on and it's o.k. you could still be faced with an expensive failure in future.

Do you have backups for the data on that macbook pro?

 

[iKor]

The entire apartment was filled with smoke. The MacBook Pro (retina) had a speck cover. What exactly should I ask the insurance company? If it'll be replaceable if the smoke does end up corroding the MacBook...

 

[Freyqq]

might want to open it up and see if you can dust off the insides, assuming anything got in there

 

[Itskorbitch!]

on second account, it was powered up, the screen did make a strange flash when it powered on. I am a bit nervous though. I am going to try and back up while I have it up and running ASAP. whats a nice external I could buy?

 

[Mr. Buzzcut]

Just have it inspected by Apple and an official statement on whether it is salvageable.

We can only guess. I see no harm in turning it on if you have a backup.

 

[leman]

I suggest that you bring it the laptop to an Apple authorised service provider to let them access the damage and recover the data for you if necessary. The insurance should in principle carry all expenses associated with the fire, but it wouldn't hurt calling them and asking whether they cover data recovery and stuff like that. In my experience insurances are usually very friendly and gladly explain these details.

P.S. Btw, this is another story about the importance of the off-site backups!