Do you use butane-powered curling tongs/straighteners?

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From The Times December 19, 2007 Curling tongs explosion leaves four teenage girls critically ill in burns unit Simon de Bruxelles Four teenage girls suffered serious burns when a gas cylinder from a set of hair curling tongs exploded in their faces as they prepared for the Christmas party season. The sisters Anya, 15, and Kira Evans, 14, and their friends Nadine Fardon, 14, and Kimberly Patterson, 15, were in a critical condition last night in a specialist burns unit. Friends said that the girls had been using a hair curling implement of the type often carried in handbags powered by a small butane canister. The roof of the bedroom collapsed as the fire took hold in the Evans family’s terraced home in Llanelli, South Wales. Some 25 fire fighters brought the blaze under control as paramedics tried to help the girls who had rushed screaming into the street with their clothes on fire. The Evans sisters had invited their two friends to their father’s home where they are believed to have begun to practise styling their hair and make-up for Christmas parties. One neighbour said: “We’ve been told the girls were using curling tongs with a gas canister which exploded. They were getting ready for a Christmas party and were experimenting doing up their hair. We’ve got no idea what caused it to explode.” The blast sent a thick plume of smoke and flames into the sky. Neighbours on both sides were forced to evacuate as the fire spread to the roofs of adjoining homes. Nicola Paskin, 34, another neighbour, said: “The girls were seen fighting their way through smoke and flames to get out of the burning house. “They looked very distressed and their clothes were blackened. The trouser legs of two of them were burnt right off and one of the others had cuts to the face.” John Jenkins, a local councillor, said: “Looking at the state of the building, it is amazing that anyone got out alive. It’s a Christmas miracle that the girls survived.” The girls, who are all pupils at Coedcae Comprehensive School in Llanelli, suffered between 29 and 41 per cent burns. Their parents were last night at their bedsides at the Morriston Hospital, in Swansea. Hamish Laing, consultant plastic surgeon at the specialist burns unit, said that all four girls had undergone surgery. He said: “They all suffered flash burns to their faces. Their condition is critical and they are on breathing machines, but we are optimistic about their condition. Their injuries are hopefully not life-threatening. All four girls will need skin grafts and at least one will need plastic surgery.” The sisters’ parents said in a statement: “We are totally devastated by what has happened and we are praying for the girls’ recovery.” Harvey Jones, head teacher at the girls’ school, held a special assembly for them yesterday. He said: “We are in a state of shock at the fire.” Police and the fire service yesterday began an investigation into the cause of the explosion, but it will be several days before they can interview any of the girls. A police spokesman said: “We will need to speak to the girls to find out exactly what has gone on.” The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said: “We will have to await a proper fire investigation into this incident before we know exactly what happened. The gas canisters in hair-styling tools should be perfectly safe while used in normal circumstances but, as we all know, the most innocuous thing can cause a major house fire.” I have often wondered about these little devices that many women carry around. The canisters (containing butane) are quite small but, of course, highly explosive, just like cigarette lighters. They are manufactured, usually, in countries which are not noted for good employment conditions and one sometimes wonders about their quality control! It only takes a fault in the valve for the whole thing to ignite and explode. Do you use gas or electric curlers or straighteners and have you ever worried about their safety?