What Happens When E-Cigarettes Explode

E-cigarettes could be more dangerous than normal cigarettes. Especially if the smoking device can blow up in your face, like it did for 29-year-old Cordero Caples, a Memphis native living in Colorado Springs.

Caples was smoking the e-cig Friday during a work break when the device exploded, breaking his neck, burning his mouth and knocking out his teeth, his sister Colessia Porter said. The Colorado college student was rushed to Memorial Hospital in critical condition, and underwent a successful spinal surgery on Sunday night.

Caples’ dreams of becoming a fitness trainer could be dashed because of this accident, his sister said. His family, including his 1-year-old daughter, has been distraught about the e-cig blow up. Explosions with the e-cigs have been linked to faulty batteries, research from the U.S. Fire Administration showed.