Woman Claims Chest Pains Caused By Cell Phone Battery Explosion

According to the personal injury suit filed by Shanetha Young, she felt a shock on her left arm as her Kyocera Strobe wireless phone’s battery exploded while she was attempting to place a call.

Court documents say that Young received transport to the emergency room, where she was admitted for chest pain, after the incident. She claims she continues to suffer from chest pain and will require ongoing medical treatment.

According to Young, the phone’s potential for exploding or igniting and sending an electric shock through the user’s body created an unreasonable danger.

On July 23, Young filed suit against Kyocera Wireless Corp., Kyocera Communications Inc., MetroPCS Communications Inc., John Doe Battery Manufacturer, and John Doe Battery Distributor in the Sherman Division of the Eastern District of Texas.

According to the suit, Young purchased the phone from the MetroPCS store in Plano, Texas in July of 2007.

The suit alleges negligence on the part of the defendants for manufacturing, marketing, and selling an unreasonably dangerous and defective wireless phone and battery and failure to warn of the possibility of the phone exploding and/or shocking those using it and of the hazard created by the explosion.

Young also claims negligence against the company for failure to provide a safety device that would stop the user from being shocked by the phone, failure to warn, failure to sell the phone in a safe condition, failure to test or inspect the phone, and failure to establish proper adequate quality control methods to provide a safe phone and battery.

Young claims the defendants are liable for the physical and emotional harm she suffered and alleges strict liability, negligence, and breach of warranty against them.