SEE IT: Hoverboard bursts into flames on UW Bothell campus



BOTHELL, Wash. -- A new warning about the possible dangers of hoverboards.

A student at the University of Washington-Bothell campus shot cellphone video of his roommate’s hoverboard smoking, then bursting into flames.

Austin Camphouse said he owned the hoverboard for less than a month before his device began making strange noises on Thursday evening.

“The battery just started clicking,” he said, “It was really odd.”

Only a few moments later, Camphouse’s roommate Matthew Soucy saw smoke trickling out of the device.

“It went 0 to 100 real quick,” Soucy said. “It was so crazy.”

The stream of smoke grew into a billowing cloud -- that’s when Soucy grabbed a fire extinguisher, right before the hoverboard exploded in flames.

Camphouse said he bought the hoverboard on eBay for $260; now he wishes he had saved the money.

“Here you see the black marks,” Camphouse said, pointing to ash marks left on the dorm building. “It’s ash and stuff from the battery flying out. They (flames) were flying out about 10 feet in every direction.”

The fire forced an evacuation at the Husky Village dorms. Nobody was injured.

Hoverboards are not allowed to be inside the dorms but they are allowed on campus at UW Bothell.

Washington State University already banned the devices. The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission recorded at least 28 investigations in 19 states dealing with hoverboard fires. The agency urges owners to keep a fire extinguisher handy.

Camphouse’s roommate Elija Chisley is thinking it might be time to get rid of his hoverboard before it has a chance to cause any damage.

“Now that his blew up, I’m kind of scared,” said Chisley. “I don’t trust it inside my car or anything.”

UW Bothell said it will review its policy on hoverboards and may end up banning the devices campuswide.