As seen on [H]ard|OCP:
“I work as a pc technician for America’s largest electronics retailer. Today a customer brought his laptop in for repair and stated that it “exploded”. After five years as a tech I thought I had seen it all and was wondering about his perception of “explosion”.
As I cracked open the box of a five month old Compaq Presario I was hit with a foul stench and immediately knew the chosen words of “explosion” were appropriate. Somehow, someway….this laptops battery totally exploded causing a large fireball and partial disintegration of the computer. The battery caught fire sending a fireball through the front of the laptop blowing a three inch hole through what used to be the floppy on the opposite side of the case.
I know that any battery has the potential for danger given the correct circumstances, however this battery met a truly violent end under normal operating conditions. The customer stated that his entire table was burnt to a crisp and would of been true of the whole house if a fire extinguisher was not as handy as it was.”