Pictures courtesy of TMN

A Belgian tourist was injured in the early hours of 29 January 2026 after a power bank exploded and caught fire inside a beer bar on Pattaya’s Walking Street, prompting emergency assistance and renewed warnings about electronic device safety.

The incident occurred at around 3.00am when officers from Pattaya City Special Affairs were alerted by members of the public that a foreign tourist had been hurt by an exploding power bank inside a beer bar on Walking Street. Rescue workers and officials were dispatched to the scene to provide assistance.

At the bar, officers found the injured man, identified as Mr Segers Frank Willem C., aged 58, a Belgian national. He was in visible pain and had sustained burn injuries to his left thigh and hand. First aid was administered at the scene before relatives and friends transported him to Pattaya City Hospital for further treatment.

According to an unnamed bar employee who witnessed the incident, the injured man had been sitting and drinking normally inside the bar prior to the explosion. The witness, who was seated nearby, said a sudden loud bang was heard, followed by sparks and flames emerging from the man’s shorts pocket, causing panic among patrons inside the venue.

The power bank the tourist was carrying in his shorts pocket was later found to have exploded and ignited, falling to the floor while still burning. At the same time, his shortsmcaught fire, prompting staff and others in the bar to quickly help extinguish the flames and move him away from the immediate area before contacting authorities.

An inspection of the power bank identified as the source of the incident revealed that it had been severely damaged and melted by fire. No further injuries were reported among other customers or staff present at the time.

Following the incident, authorities issued a warning to the public and tourists to exercise greater caution when using and carrying electronic devices, particularly power banks. Emphasis was placed on avoiding substandard, damaged, or uncertified devices, as these may pose a serious fire and explosion risk if overheated or faulty.

Key Takeaways

• A 58-year-old Belgian tourist was injured when a power bank exploded in his trouser pocket at a Pattaya bar.

• The incident occurred at 3.00am on 29 January 2026 on Walking Street in Chon Buri province.

• Authorities warned the public about the dangers of using damaged or non-standard power banks.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now from TMN 2026-01-30

 

 

Thankfully the battery packs in phones themselves don't seem to blow up with such regularity. One can understand why airlines are getting leery about power banks in luggage.

I bet the guy now holds the record for getting his pants off in that bar!

Never put in pockets. Put in man bag.

Buy established brands like Anker at reputable sources.

If you browse Lazada you see ridiculous stuff for 1xx Baht.

14 minutes ago, Harrisfan said:

Never put in pockets. Put in man bag.

Real men don't carry man bags.

1 minute ago, KhunBENQ said:

Buy established brands like Anker at reputable sources.

If you browse Lazada you see ridiculous stuff for 1xx Baht.

Since a high percentage, if not all of these are churned out from hundreds, maybe thousands of factories in China, buying name brand products is no real guarantee of improved safety. I bought a "Goodmans" branded power bank in the 'Middle at Lidl' in the UK. No British safety kite marks or other signs of approval beyond a brand name linked to quality loudspeakers.

I believe that these combustion issues are related to impurities in the chemicals used in the basic battery assembly. This is excarerbated by the more frequent charge and discharge pattern of power banks and mobile phones. Charging and discharging creates internal heat.

When flying, I carry my phone and a single spare power bank in my outer jacket pocket these days. They go in there for the pre-boarding security check, and stay there for the flight. The jacket never goes in the overhead locker. I can see airlines disabling the in-flight charging options on USB ports.

As for needing to carry a power bank on a night out, if the phone battery doesn't hold it's charge any more than 12 hours, either get a new battery for it, or get a new phone... or go home earlier.

Ya should never be using them devil devices, in a bar no less.

Leave the phone at home. Focus on real live conversation.

Was it a made in israel model ?

1 hour ago, Harrisfan said:

Never put in pockets. Put in man bag.

1 hour ago, NanLaew said:

Real men don't carry man bags.

well, real men do have man sacks, which I guess could be called man bags. Just lucky he didn't blow his family jewels up, or he might have been looking into transgender surgery.

Key takeaway:

foreigner lucky he did not blow up his man-bag

She rather seems to be raising the temperature!😀

Not only friction burns in Pattaya then!!

2 hours ago, Woke to Sounds said:

Ya should never be using them devil devices, in a bar no less.

Leave the phone at home. Focus on real live conversation.

Not to mention playing 'Where you come from?' followed by an engaging round of tic-tac-toe with the lovely hostesses.

...if you can entice them away from their 'devil devices'.

"Is that an exploding power bank in your pocket, or are you pleased to see me?

11 hours ago, NanLaew said:

Real men don't carry man bags.

Real men have their pants blow up, look around, and ask, "Is that all ya got?"

Imagine if the same incident happened in an airport, or even on a plane. This guy would still be in custody and investigated as a suspected terrorist.

Instead, and lucky for him, it happened in a beer bar where he is a suspected customer. 🙂