Kerri Absolom, a 35-year-old woman from Dorset, was left with life-altering injuries when vape batteries in her pocket exploded and left her with bad burns and emotional trauma. Kerri was getting ready to head to work when she saw smoke coming from her clothes. It quickly got out of hand as sparks started shooting from the vape battery. “I’m not squeamish, so I looked and was shocked to see my leg had been burnt to a crisp. As I saw a small flame start to flicker in my pocket, I tried to furiously pat it out with my hands,” Kerri said in an interview with Mirror.
Kerri and her husband, Christopher, fought to take off her pants as the fire intensified. “Sparks were flying out of the battery like a firework. I attempted, along with my husband, Christopher, to rip my trousers off as it got worse. We’d nearly had them off when the vape battery dropped through my trouser leg and onto the dog bed. The sparks went out, but because it was so hot, the hissing battery burned a hole through the bed into the carpet,” Kerri said.
Immediate Response
Realizing the extent of her burns, Christopher immediately summoned an ambulance. Firefighters, when they arrived, took Kerri out into the garden and cooled her leg with a hose and relieved the pain. They also took the sock-wrapped vape battery out of the house to avoid further damage.
Experts later determined that the fire had been triggered when the vape battery came into contact with Kerri’s keys, which acted as a conductor. Kerri was admitted to the hospital with third-degree burns, where she was treated with morphine to manage the excruciating pain. Her hospital stay lasted a week, during which doctors closely monitored her recovery.
Recovery and Impact on Mental Health
Kerri had a skin graft included in her treatment to help her heal and reduce scarring. Even so, healing was extremely painful.”The pain was indescribable. Even taking a shower hurt. And I just kept breaking out in allergic reactions and rashes from the pain medication. I couldn’t sleep because I was so scared,” she said.
The accident also had an effect on Kerri’s mental health, and she was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Psychologically, Kerri was placed on medical leave of absence until January 2023 while she recovered physically and emotionally.
Kerri’s experience underscores the potential dangers of vape batteries and the severe consequences of their malfunction. Her painful journey of recovery, both physical and mental, serves as a stark reminder of the importance of taking safety precautions when using electronic devices.
