A Vodafone store in Canberra, Australia had an unexpected emergency situation, thanks to a demonstration model of Apple's iPad Air.
According to a spokesperson for Vodafone, the tablet "burst of flames" and the source of the fire was identified as the charging port. Local fireman rushed to the location and put out the fire as smoke filled the store. No staff members and customers were injured during the incident.
After the incident, an Apple representative visited the store to collect the iPad for testing and possible explanation behind the explosion. The fire may have been caused by extreme heat.
Neither Apple nor Vodafone have made any statement about the malfunctioning iPad.
This isn't the first time Apple's products have turned out to be hazardous. Earlier, one woman was killed and one man was placed into a coma after getting electrocuted by an iPhone charger. However, both incidents, which took place in China, were caused by faulty third-party accessories.
Released Nov. 1 globally, Apple's lighter and faster iPad Air joins its iPad and iPad Mini line of tablets. Manufacturing companies believed to be involved in making both iPads and iPhones are in the U.S., Japan, China and Korea.
Current events are a sore spot for Apple, whose shares have soared from below $400 to around $530, a 30 percent increase.
Most recently, Apple made news by announcing plans to open a mineral plant in Arizona with New Hampshire-based sapphire glass maker GT Advanced Technologies. The $578 million deal could mean blue sapphire for future products including the iPhone and iPad. According to reports, the nearly unbreakable glass can cost up to seven times as much as Corning's Gorilla Glass. Currently, the only phone utilizing the sapphire display is the ultra-luxury Vertu smartphone which retails for more than $3,000. Sapphire glass is also used for iPhone 5s' Touch ID fingerprint scanner.
