Jump to content
The Official Site of the Vancouver Canucks
Canucks Community

Woman killed by electric shock answering iPhone 5 while it was recharging


nux4lyfe

Recommended Posts

A 23-year-old Chinese woman has allegedly died from an electric shock when using Apple’s iPhone 5 while it was being charged, her family members claim, according to media reports.

The older sister of alleged victim Ma Ailun took to Sina Weibo, China’s popular Twitter-like social network, over the weekend to demand an explanation from Apple and urged people not to use their phones while charging them.

A Sina Tech report said that Apple has issued a statement expressing condolences to Ma’s family over the unfortunate incident, and vowed to investigate the incident thoroughly. The company also said it would cooperate with authorities over the matter.

Another report, this time from China Daily, said that local police confirmed Ma had died of electrocution, but have not concluded whether her phone played a part in causing the incident.

Experts have noted that there is a risk in using any electrical device while it is being charged, according to a South China Morning Post report — be it a shaver or a phone. An expert in the report also cautioned that the exact circumstances of the incident are not clear, and it would not be suitable to jump to any conclusions at this stage.

China is known for selling Apple products on the grey market, with the iPhone 5 landing in the country less than a week after Apple began selling it last year, and counterfeit iPhone 5 models had arrived by then too.

Ma’s sister mentioned on Weibo that the phone was bought last December and still under warranty, and the family has handed the phone over to authorities for investigation.

Reports have said that Ma, a resident in the northwestern Chinese province of Xinjiang, had been a flight attendant at China Southern Airlines, though she recently quit her job. Ma’s sister on Weibo mentioned that she had been due to get married on August 18.

We have reached out to Apple for comment and will update with any further details provided.

Image Credit: Jean-Sebastien Evrard via AFP/Getty Images

Discover and promote exclusive online offers

NEW by TNW Market

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, the common voltage in China is 220V compared to 120V here, so that can factor in. 120V will give you quite a jolt but 240V (also available here for larger appliances) will do some damage. 220V in China should be similar and it'd depend on if the circuit was broken or if she stayed in contact with the electricity.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It isn't the voltage that kills though, it is the current. Although 347V (most commercial lighting) will cause your muscles to seize, making it impossible for you to let go of the wire/device that you are being shocked by. This allows the current the time to cause serious damage.

I am an electrician and have been shocked by 120V quite a number of times, but with extremely limited current. And I have also been shocked by 347V twice, once off an energized circuit and once off an unbalanced neutral wire. Both times I was lucky to have someone near me to knock me off the wire but my arm was numb for at least 6 hours after. Needless to say I don't work on live 347V anymore haha

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It isn't the voltage that kills though, it is the current. Although 347V (most commercial lighting) will cause your muscles to seize, making it impossible for you to let go of the wire/device that you are being shocked by. This allows the current the time to cause serious damage.

I am an electrician and have been shocked by 120V quite a number of times, but with extremely limited current. And I have also been shocked by 347V twice, once off an energized circuit and once off an unbalanced neutral wire. Both times I was lucky to have someone near me to knock me off the wire but my arm was numb for at least 6 hours after. Needless to say I don't work on live 347V anymore haha

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That was more my point and I'm no electrician (didn't even know about 347V). A friend of mine is though and has told me stories of getting knocked off his ladder after coming in contact with 240V. With any voltage (or current, or whatever) I'd agree the sustained contact is the biggest danger for households, hence the issue with using electronics while having a bath due to the water being able to maintain the circuit with your body.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How many times have people, worldwide, used their iPhone while its charging. I have at least a dozen times in one day so we can easily say 500 million at the very least, one person dies, probably from a frayed wire or cheap ass aftermarket charger and this is cause for a news story?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...