DENVER, Colorado — The cell phone video shows a man screaming in pain with an obvious burn mark on his arm, while his friend shows a charred electronic device.
“Look at this! It almost caught my car on fire,” the man said. “The battery exploded.”
In the moments after the explosion, Chandan Shah shot the cell phone video, he said, to warn about a device that is supposed to keep people safe.
"It can put their life in danger," Shah said.
Two weeks ago, he said, a friend gave him a 6-in-1 “CrashSafe” device, promoted as a flashlight, emergency beacon, seatbelt cutter, window breaker that doubles as a cell phone charger and portable battery.
"I thought it was really cool to have it in the car, just in case in the future something happens," said Shah.
Something did happen Thursday night, and his friend Matthew Jouy was also in the car.
"He came to pick me up as usual and whatnot, and we were going home," said Jouy. "I had my elbow resting on this area, and we started smelling this weird smelling and started hearing a weird spark and a noise."
The CrashSafe Charger was inside the console, charging a phone, and caught on fire, melting everything inside the console and instantly burning Jouy’s elbow.
"It might scar, but it's not like my life is in danger,” said Jouy. “I just wish they'll do something about this and take it seriously because it could hurt somebody."
KMGH television station in Denver reached out to CrashSafe, and the company responded in a statement saying they “are working to address the situation” and “are committed to ensuring a safe customer experience.” We asked if the device has caused any other fires and did not receive a response.
Shah said CrashSafe told him they are investigating and contacting the manufacturer. He has filed a complaint with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, out of concern this could have been much worse.
CrashSafe released another statement saying: “We are deeply disappointed to learn of this unfortunate incident. CrashSafe is committed to ensuring a safe and effective customer experience, and we are addressing this matter accordingly.”
