University bans hoverboards from residential buildings

The University officially banned hoverboards from residential buildings in an email sent to the student body on Jan. 20 from Tracey Angel, director of Housing and Operations.

“They may not be stored, charged or operated in university housing,” Angel wrote. “We ask that if you obtained a hover board over break, you leave it at home and do not bring it back to school with you. If you have a device here already, please take it off-campus.”

Angel clarified in an email to The News-Letter that there had not been reported incidents in residence life halls, but media reports had raised safety concerns.

“During mid to late Fall semester, there were a growing number of media reports across the country about incidents of fires and explosions involving hover boards,” Angel wrote. “At that time, we started to look into the safety of these devices.”

Angel mentioned that other schools reached out to Hopkins to see how the University was addressing the potential safety issue.

Hoverboards have been plagued by faulty, unstable batteries. If charged too long, the batteries can burst into flames. There have been incidents where a hoverboard exploded while someone was riding it, and multiple people have sustained injuries after falling off of hoverboards.

On Jan. 20, the same day the prohibition was issued at the University, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Director Elliot Kaye, released a statement about hoverboards.

“We continue to work diligently to provide the answers on hoverboards that consumers rightfully want and deserve,” Kaye stated. “As noted in this related announcement, we are actively investigating a number of companies that make or sell hoverboards.”

Amazon offered full refunds to people who had purchased hoverboards through them.

Beyond the concern with batteries overheating and combustion, Kaye said that there would be further investigations into how people are falling off hoverboards. They will be investigating if there is something in the hoverboard design that is conducive to instability and falling. He encourages people to wear the appropriate safety gear while using hoverboards.