12-Year-Old Boy Dies After Charging Phone Explodes At Home

A phone explosion at a home in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday killed a 12-year-old boy.

Police said the boy, identified as Lakhan, died after the battery of the phone exploded while it was put on charge.

"His uncle rushed inside the house when he heard the explosion, he took him to the hospital where he died,” a senior police officer told local television station NDTV.

One of the victim’s relatives said, "We heard some sound. Someone said it was blast. We came running inside the house and saw the child lying on the floor; there were pieces of the charger, too."

Police filed a case and were investigating the incident. They said the intensity of the explosion was such that even the switchboard was broken into pieces. Meanwhile, the body was of the victim was handed over to the family. The brand of the phone that exploded was not known.

In a similar incident Tuesday, a minor boy was critically injured after a mobile phone exploded in the Indian state of Odisha. Police said the boy, identified as Lachhman Bhunjia, was trying to charge the phone by connecting the device to a solar energy output socket when it exploded. The boy, who sustained critical burn injuries to his abdomen and face, was rushed to a nearby hospital in serious condition. The boy was reportedly listed stable as of Wednesday afternoon.

In another incident in Bangalore, capital of the southern Indian state Karnataka, in May, an 18-year-old lost three fingers of his hand after his phone exploded as he was using it while charging. The incident took place when the teen, a construction worker, was on a video call while having lunch with his co-workers. The victim started screaming in pain and co-workers rushed him to a nearby hospital after they noticed his fingers were severed. Doctors performed an emergency surgery but were unable to save three fingers of his left hand.