Fond du Lac Fire officials: Alert teacher spots Acer eBook on fire; could battery be to blame?

FOND DU LAC -- Officials with the Fond du Lac Fire Department on Tuesday, March 14th shared video and photos after an Acer eBook caught fire at a school in Fond du Lac.

According to fire officials, an alert Fond du Lac Schools teacher smelled fire and found the eBook on fire. The eBook was not being charged, and wasn't in use at the time.

Investigators are now checking whether the eBook's battery is part of a recall of laptop batteries.

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission in January issued a recall of batteries for HP and Compaq Notebook computers due to fire and burn hazards.

According to CPSC, the batteries can overheat, posing fire and burn hazards.

This expanded recall involves lithium-ion batteries containing Panasonic cells that are used in HP notebook computers. The batteries are compatible with HP, Compaq, HP ProBook, HP ENVY, Compaq Presario, and HP Pavilion notebook computers. HP has expanded the number of recalled batteries, which were shipped with notebook computers sold between March 2013 and October 2016. The black batteries measure about 8 to 10.5 inches long, 2 inches wide and about 1 inch high. The battery bar code is printed on the back of the battery. “HP Notebook Battery” and the model number are printed on the battery. The batteries included in this expanded recall have bar codes starting with: 6BZLU, 6CGFK, 6CGFQ, 6CZMB, 6DEMA, 6DEMH, 6DGAL and 6EBVA.

HP has received one additional report of the battery overheating, melting and charring and causing about $1,000 in property damage.

These laptops were sold at Best Buy, Walmart, Costco, Sam’s Club and authorized dealers nationwide and online at www.hp.com and other websites from March 2013 through October 2016 for between $300 and $1,700. The batteries were also sold separately for between $50 and $90.