Firefighters are warning about the dangers of e-cigarettes after a woman was injured by one when it exploded.
They are urging owners of the devices to use the correct charger following the incident, in which the victim suffered shock and smoke inhalation.
She is thought to have attached the cigarette to an incompatible charger, resulting in a fire in her flat.
The blaze in Barking, east London, followed an incident in which a 65-year-old hospital patient burnt her face and hands in an e-cigarette fire.
The device is thought to have ignited an oxygen supply next to her bed at Wythenshawe hospital in Manchester.
‘People assume e-cigarettes are much safer than ordinary cigarettes, and in most cases they are,’ said Charlie Pugsley of London Fire Brigade.
‘The danger is that people sometimes use incorrect chargers, which runs the risk of overcharging and can potentially have explosive results.
‘We are calling on e-cig retailers to ensure they sell the correct chargers for the cigarettes.’
E-cigarettes must not be left to charge overnight or when their owners are asleep, the fire brigade added.
Smokers are increasingly using the devices, which are tobacco-free but provide a nicotine hit, to quit the habit.
However, some experts say they make smoking harder to give up.