An electric skateboard nearly resulted in tragedy for a NSW family after it burst into flames as its young owner slept nearby.
The girl, 12, was woken around midnight on Tuesday by the sound of crackling, finding her charging skateboard ablaze in her bedroom.
While the girl and her four family members made it safely out of the house, she was taken to hospital with serious smoke inhalation.
Fire and Rescue NSW, who attended the home in Yamba on the state's north coast, urged the public to be careful with electronic devices, pinning the blame on the skateboard's lithium-ion battery.
They appealed for Christmas shoppers to be careful when purchasing e-bikes, e-scooters and e-skateboards, which contain the fire-prone batteries.
When overcharged, lithium-ion batteries can reach extreme temperatures, leading to violent explosions and difficult to extinguish fires that emit toxic smoke.
Firefighters also urged homeowners to check their smoke alarms.
