Smoking Samsung Galaxy Note 7 prompts Southwest Airlines evacuation

Despite the recall and replacement of Galaxy Note 7 smartphones sold across the globe, Samsung Electronics remains under fire due to a string of accidents involving its flagship gadget, especially after a smoking replacement device forced passengers of a Baltimore-bound aircraft to evacuate in Louisville Wednesday.

The pilot of Southwest Airlines Flight 994 ordered a plane evacuation of 75 passengers and crew members after Brian Green’s Galaxy Note 7 overheated and started smoking before takeoff. The passenger from New Albany reportedly threw his burning device on the airport ground while the plane was still at the gate.

“Prior to Southwest Airlines Flight 994 departing from Louisville for Baltimore, a customer reported smoke emitting from an electronic device. All customers and crew deplaned safety via the main cabin door,” the airline company said in a statement.

Green and the rest of the affected passengers were accommodated in other Southwest flights as a result of the incident.

In Indiana, Green’s wife, Sarah, claimed that the disputed phone was in fact a replacement unit from a local AT&T store. Speaking to the Courier Journal, she said, "I would love to know why the replacement phone is doing what the other one was doing.”

Sought for comment, Samsung said it is coordinating with authorities to retrieve the Galaxy Note 7 device to find out the cause of the incident.

“There is no evidence that this incident is related to the new Note 7. We are working with the authorities and Southwest now to recover the device and confirm the cause,” Samsung said in a statement.

Galaxy Note 7 complaints

Less than a month after launching the Galaxy Note 7 in Aug. 11, Samsung decided in to recall over 1 million units of the smartphone sold worldwide. By Sep. 7, courtesy devices were given to customers who opted to get a replacement device instead of refunding the payment.

It is not immediately clear if affected passengers will seek damages against Samsung due to their cancelled flight. But earlier, two men reportedly sued the South Korean smartphone maker for the injuries and burns they got from their defective devices. (Read: Samsung resumes Galaxy Note 7 sale, customers seek damages for burns on crotch, legs)

Touted as the best Android phone so far by critics, Galaxy Note 7 is the first smartphone to use iris-scanning biometric security features. Each device retails for $1,349 in Australia. (Read: Samsung Galaxy Note 7 price, release date in Australia: Samsung pioneers iris scanning on smartphones)

Built on a 5.7-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED display, Samsung Galaxy Note 7 boasts of a 3500mAh battery, which was the ultimate cause of the global recall. Roughly 65 percent of the batteries of the latest Samsung flagship phone were manufactured by Samsung SDI Co., a sister company of Seoul-based smartphone maker. The remaining 35 percent were made by Hong-Kong based Amperex Technology Ltd.