Electrocuted & Killed By Her iPhone, Family Claim

A twenty three year old woman has died in Xinjiang, China after using her iPhone while it was charging, her family claim.

According to the young woman’s brother, Ma Ailun was trying to answer a call on the Apple handset when she received an electric shock.

The news agency Xinhua has confirmed that the police are investigating the tragic death but they have not verified that a mobile phone was the cause.

Ms Ma is reported to have been a flight attendant for China Southern Airlines and was hoping to get married in August.

Apple have said they plan to look in to the claims, in a statement they said: “We are deeply saddened to learn of this tragic incident and offer our condolences to the Ma family. We will fully investigate and co-operate with authorities in this matter.”

Ma Ailun’s sister posted a message on Thursday following the death, warning people of the possible danger.

“[I] hope that Apple Inc can give us an explanation. I also hope that all of you will refrain from using your mobile devices while charging,” it read.

There Should Be No Risk

Ms Ma’s sister has said that the iPhone 5 was purchased in December and that the original charger was being used at the time of the incident.

One expert has said that normally, mobile phone users have no reason.

“Using a handset while it’s recharging should be completely safe,” Prof Will Stewart, from the Institution of Engineering and Technology.

“The charger output is low voltage – it’s about five volts – much too unpowerful to be dangerous, therefore there should be no risk at all. Having said that, something in the charger could have had a fault on it and/or the mains wiring it was connected to might have been faulty.”

[Image via touchuserguide]

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23317338