Plane Cabin Fills With Toxic Smoke As Power Bank Catches Fire Over The Ocean, Hours Away From Landing

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It tin beryllium annoying to woody pinch all nan rules astir lithium batteries connected planes, but wouldn't you cognize it, nan airlines really person bully reasons for those rules. A caller KLM flight conscionable showed america 1 of those reasons aft a powerfulness slope caught fire, filling nan compartment pinch toxic fume while nan level was still complete nan Atlantic Ocean, 4 hours from its destination, CBS News reports. It's nan benignant of point you cognize successful nan backmost of your caput could perchance happen, but astatine nan aforesaid time, it had to beryllium perfectly terrifying to beryllium connected committee while it happened.

The bully news is, nan level itself didn't drawback fire, and a formation attendant was capable to put retired the portable telephone charger occurrence beautiful quickly pinch nan thief of a occurrence extinguisher. The formation from São Paulo, Brazil, was besides capable to proceed connected to its destination successful Amsterdam alternatively of rerouting location else. So astatine slightest nan terrified passengers didn't extremity up dealing pinch a monolithic recreation hold successful different country. The level reportedly landed safely, too, and truthful acold nary injuries person been reported. 

KLM has since issued a statement, saying, "Smoke was detected connected committee owed to a burning powerfulness bank. The unit quickly extinguished nan device, pursuing established information procedures."

This surely isn't nan first formation to ever woody pinch a artillery occurrence connected board. In fact, as CBS News reminds us, conscionable past month, a artillery occurrence forced a Delta formation from Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to divert to Fort Myers, Florida. The formation unit managed to extinguish nan occurrence beautiful fast, but nan residual fume successful nan compartment led to it being declared an emergency. Thankfully, location were nary injuries connected that flight, either. 

Lithium batteries are successful beautiful overmuch everything now, making artillery fires a overmuch bigger problem for airlines than they utilized to be. In December of past year, nan FAA reported that artillery fires were up 388% since 2015, and conscionable this twelvemonth alone, location person been astatine slightest 35 lithium artillery incidents connected flights, and astatine slightest 12 of those were related to powerfulness banks. Following nan emergence successful lithium artillery incidents, Southwest issued a caller rule earlier this twelvemonth requiring powerfulness banks to beryllium retired successful plain show while they're successful use. Meanwhile, NL Times reports that news of this astir caller KLM artillery occurrence led Emirates to prohibition utilizing powerfulness banks connected its flights. It's besides important to statement that KLM and respective different airlines banned their usage a while ago.

Generally speaking, inhaling fume is bad for you, but nan fume from lithium artillery fires is besides worse for you than you mightiness think. One study from a fewer years ago found burning lithium batteries merchandise ample amounts of hydrogen fluoride gas, arsenic good as phosphoryl fluoride. So while you could astir apt find worse things to inhale, you besides really don't want to respire nan fume coming disconnected a artillery fire. I'd besides beryllium consenting to stake you don't want to spot immoderate fume astatine each while you're connected a level complete nan Atlantic Ocean, either, sloppy of really toxic it is.