Special Report: Dialing Danger

To hear Todd Delpo of Naugatuck, Connecticut tell his story it was like a bomb went off in his room.

Todd Delpo, Cell Phone Battery Exploded
"It landed all the way over there by the doorway - that 's how much protrusion this explosion had. literally flew across the room."

It was caused by Todd's after-market cell phone battery.

Todd Delpo, Cell Phone Battery Exploded
"Who would have thought that my cellphone would blow up."

The explosion burned Todd's desk, carpet, computer monitor, and books. Todd put the fire out himself, but the danger was present.

Todd Delpo, Cell Phone Battery Exploded
"What if my parents were sleeping - they could have been awakened to a fire at their door - they could have been killed - I could have been killed if I were sleeping in a different part of the house."

Luckily, Todd and his family didn't get seriously hurt. But reports of exploding cell phone batteries have sent a number of people to the emergency room including two California teenagers. Incidents like these have the Federal Government Investigating.

Scott Wolfson, Consumer Product Safety Commission
"People have been hurt, there have been fires, it has happenedin a wide variety of cases. Here's the problem - over-heated batteries that ignite."

Scott Wolfson, Consumer Product Safety Commission
"This is a little product with a lot of power in it."

The consumer product safety commission is recalling 2 types of cell phone batteries. The first one is a dangerous counterfeit. It's designed for this "LG -brand TM 510" phone.The recall includes these 4 serial numbers. If the numbers on your battery don't match any of these exactly, then you're ok. The second recalled battery comes from this Kyocera 7135 smart phone. The serial number ends in "05"

John Walls, Cellular Telecomm. & Internet Assoc.
"If one battery has a problem with it, it explodes or it detonates in some way, or there's a spark or something, then that's one too many.

Right now, there are hundreds of different cell phone batteries on the market, making it difficult to detect counterfeits. In response the wireless industry is developing uniform battery designs, and testing procedures, to check for bad batteries.

John Walls, Cellular Telecomm. & Internet Assoc.
"There has never been general agreement among the industry inbasic standards that everyone can agree to."

Even if your cell phone battery has not been recalled Here's what you should keep in mind, only use the battery charger that came with your cell phone.

Scott Wolfson, Consumer Product Safety Commission
"Incompatibility between chargers and phones could lead to overheating.Never touch the battery contacts with metal, such as keys or coins."

Scott Wolfson, Consumer Product Safety Commission
"There is a hazard to consumers who take the battery out of the cell phone and simply have it in their pocket. Don't crush or put the cell phone under pressure. And try to avoid dropping the phone."

Be sure to buy replacement parts from a name-brand dealer. As Todd now knows...

Todd Delpo, Cell Phone Battery Exploded
"I will never buy an aftermarket battery again."

If you notice your phone is smoking, or too hot to handle, stop using it and report it to the CPSC. Having these hot topics in mind, should keep your wireless chat cool.