A Kansas man is nursing his injuries after his electronic cigarette exploded in his hand. Parts of the device pierced the wall of his home.

Jonathan Reser was trying to stop smoking normal cigarettes, so he took up the e-cigarette, KAKE reported.

>> Read more trending stories  

He followed the instructions and put the battery into the device. He said he heard sizzling as if he was pushing the button, but wasn’t. It then exploded in his hand.

“I went to listen to it. It just went bam, like a bullet,” Reser said.

The device broke into two pieces that impaled themselves into opposite walls. It also had pieces of metal and plastic scattered across the room, KAKE reported.

Reser said he took it back to the store, where the staff pointed out a warning sign that stated e-cigarettes can potentially explode. They also told him a small computer chip could have prevented the battery from exploding.

Reser said he wasn’t told about the chip when he first purchased the device.

The federal government has warned that it could be dangerous when a lithium-ion battery fails, and could act like a "flaming rocket."

About the Author

Featured

Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

Credit: NYT