Life

Electronic Fidget Spinners Are Catching on Fire

The fidget spinners with built-in speakers, LED lights, and Bluetooth capability may be dangerous.

a child shows a 'Hand Spinner' on May 20, 2017 in Paris, France.
a child shows a 'Hand Spinner' on May 20, 2017 in Paris, France.
Getty

Look out, fidget-spinner-crazed people of the world. The spinners with built-in speakers, LED lights, and Bluetooth capabilities may be dangerous. Let this serve as a warning: the seemingly harmless little toys are exploding. Not “exploding” in popularity—actually exploding.

There have been two reported situations in which the tricked-out fidget spinners have exploded—one in Alabama and one in Michigan.

“We were about five or 10 minutes from leaving the house for the day. [My son] noticed it burst into flames and he started screaming,” Kimberly Allums of Gardendale, Alabama, told WBRC FOX. “I was downstairs and all I heard was, ‘fire, fire.’ The fidget spinner wasn’t smoking, it was in flames.”

Allums’ son’s spinner had been charging for less than 45 minutes when it burst into flames.

There was a similar incident in Fenton, Michigan, where Michelle Carr’s spinner caught fire mid-charge. The spinner melted, and her counter is now scorched.

“I personally won't buy another one because of the fear of it,” she said, per NBC 25 News. “But I know there are tons of kids who want to go get them, but if you plug them in, just stay by and make sure it's charged and it doesn't catch.”

Lesson learned: it might be wiser to get a plain ole fidget spinner without all the added luxuries. Or, at the very least, be super vigilant when you are charging it.

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