Customers Evacuated After iPad Air Explosion At Australian Vodafone Store

Vodafone VOD customers were evacuated this week after an iPad Air exploded in Australia. The incident occurred at a Vodafone store in Canberra, Australia. According to News.com.au, a "burst of flames" appeared from the charging port of an iPad demo model. Thus suggests that the problem has more to do with the product's charger than the device itself. The cause of the explosion is not yet known. Apple AAPL is unlikely to comment on the matter unless the problem is widespread and involves a product recall. If the explosion was caused by a faulty wire, a poor charging unit or some other store-related issue, Apple may choose to remain silent. Related: Panasonic's New 4K Tablet Is 12X More Expensive Than Apple's iPad Air That said, Wired reporter Nicholas Tufnell does not think it is likely that an official store would use a poorly manufactured third-party charger. If that assumption is correct and Vodafone only uses Apple-made accessories, this could turn out to be a big problem for the Cupertino, California-based tech giant. Disclosure: At the time of this writing, Louis Bedigian had no position in the equities mentioned in this report. Louis Bedigian is the Senior Tech Analyst and Features Writer of Benzinga. You can reach him at louis(at)benzingapro(dot)com. Follow him @LouisBedigianBZ