Exploding E-Cigarette Causes 'Significant Injury' To Woman's Face

MACHESNEY PARK, IL — A woman suffered a "significant facial injury" after an e-cigarette exploded at The Vape Shop in Machesney Park Monday afternoon, according to WIFR. North Park Fire Chief Joel Hallstrom told the station the woman was rushed to a hospital after a lithium battery inside the e-cigarette exploded and started a small fire inside the shop on Harlem Road.

Winnebago County Sheriff's Lt. Pete DalPra told NBC Chicago the woman took the e-cigarette to the vape shop Monday because it had been malfunctioning. After the battery was charged, she put it in her mouth and began to puff on it when it exploded, causing a "severe wound to her lower face" and starting a fire, he said.

A vape shop employee used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, police told NBC.

The woman's condition was not known late Monday afternoon.

A reporter for the station said on Twitter that the woman was headed to a hospital after the e-cigarette "blows off" her face.

E-cigarette explosions have caused injuries before. Last month, a 38-year-old Florida man died when his vape pen exploded. In 2015, a Joliet man said an e-cigarette went up in flames in his pocket when the battery exploded, causing severe injuries.

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