Shipment of Samsung Smartphones Explodes During Transport, 3 Dead: Hoax

Story:

Shipment of Samsung smartphones explodes during transport, 3 dead.

Analysis:

Stories circulating online since September 2016 claim that a Shipment of Samsung Smartphones has exploded during transport, and 3 people died in the incident. No, the claims are not facts.

Origin of Story

On 1 September 2016 World News Daily Report website worldnewsdailyreport.com published an article with the same title saying a semi-trailer truck carrying Samsung phones exploded in Florida, after the phones started exploding, and that 3 people have died in the incident, injuring 11 others. It is also said that some nearby vehicles were hit by the flaming projectiles (phones), and it led to a dramatic car crash of some vehicles. It is a fact that Samsung recalled millions of Galaxy Note 7 Smartphones in September 2016 because of a battery issue found to be fire-prone. The recall came after some such reported cases. In that scenario readers believed in the shipment explosion story and it has been shared ever since.

Screenshot of article on World News Daily Report website

Satire

The picture that comes with the story is in fact a Tanker that exploded after being hit by another truck in Arizona back in November 2011. The other picture showing multiple-vehicle pileup is again an old accident in October 2012 on Florida’s Gulf Coast. And more importantly, as mentioned in their Disclaimer information, World News Daily Report website is a satirical publication that publishes fictional stories. Earlier, it published stories like 200 Million Year Old Dinosaur Egg Hatches in Berlin Museum and Ship Reappears 90 Years after Going Missing in Bermuda Triangle.

So the stories saying a Shipment of Samsung Smartphones exploded during transport and that 3 people have died in the incident are simply hoaxes that originated from a satirical publication.