The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 battery saga may be coming to an end, but it still hasn’t actually ended. Despite Samsung’s best efforts to recall all potentially dangerous units distributed throughout the world and the fact that Note 7 sales have actually been resumed in some markets—including the US—some faulty units are still out in the wild and are wreaking havoc. Unfortunately, that’s not an exaggeration as one Galaxy Note 7 is reportedly responsible for a plane evacuation over at Louisville Metro Airport in Kentucky. According to reports from eyewitnesses, a Southwest Airlines flight which was just getting ready to take off had to remain grounded and all passengers were evacuated after a Galaxy Note 7 located in the back of the plane caught fire, burned through the carpet and filled the aircraft with smoke. The evacuation order was issued by the plane’s captain after the smoke found its way into the cockpit.
Fortunately enough, things ended well for everyone involved, save for a minor flight delay. Southwest Airlines has already issued an official statement confirming that no one was harmed during the incident and the plane was able to get off the ground soon afterwards. Back in mid-September, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officially banned all powered-on Galaxy Note 7 units during flights and that ban is still standing precisely because of incidents like this.
While this may not be the last time we hear of a Galaxy Note 7 causing problems to the general public, it’s to be expected that these reports will become increasingly rarer in the coming weeks as faulty units are replaced by Samsung and the US wireless carriers. The fact that T-Mobile USA actually resumed Note 7 sales earlier today suggests that the third largest carrier in the country has already more or less completed its part in recalling the device. In case you’ve recently bought a Galaxy Note 7 and are unsure whether you own a potentially dangerous model or not, a green battery icon on the status bar, the Always-On Display screen, and the Power Off screen should indicate that your phone is fitted with a safe battery.