Phone charger fire leads to man's coma: New details emerge

Tengrinews.kz - An accident happened to a man who fell into a coma after a fire caused by a phone charger in Petropavlovsk.
On August 16, a fire broke out in an apartment of a three-story residential building in Petropavlovsk. A 56-year-old man was hospitalized with poisoning from combustion products.

"The man left a charging device connected through a homemade extension cord with a loose connection. This led to overheating, ignition of the extension cord and subsequent burning of the furniture. The man was asleep at the time of the incident," said Daniyar Tyutenov, senior engineer at the Department of Emergency Situations of Petropavlovsk.

The fire was discovered by the victim's neighbor. Before the firefighters arrived, the victim's brother, who lives nearby, pulled him out of the burning room and saved their elderly mother, who was in another room. She was unharmed.
The injured man was admitted to the city emergency hospital with a diagnosis of "toxic effect of carbon monoxide" in a critical condition.

"The man was urgently hospitalized in the intensive care unit and connected to a mechanical ventilator. After treatment he came to his senses and has been transferred to the therapeutic department today," reported Gulnar Sailau, spokesperson for the regional health department.

After the incident, the regional emergency services reminded once again that leaving chargers plugged in for extended periods is dangerous.

"Fires often occur due to short circuits and overheating of electrical wiring. To prevent this, avoid leaving chargers and electrical devices plugged in when not in use," emphasized Daniyar Tyutenov.