Customer's Amazon Echo Dot Allegedly Burst Into Flames

A family from Sandusky, Ohio claims to have returned home over the weekend to find their kitchen filling with smoke and their third-generation Amazon Echo Dot in flames. Joe Jachym says that he and his wife returned home and as he was heading outside he saw that "smoke was banked down" in the kitchen and he says he yelled to his wife "Your Alexa is burning!" Jachym is a retired firefighter having been on the job for 26-years.

He noted that neither the electrical outlet in their home nor the device charger cord was damaged by the flames. He says that only the device and the counter around it were damaged, indicating that the fire started inside the unit itself. The retired firefighter noted that with an electrical outlet fire, usually the breaker will be knocked out, but there was no sign of fire near the outlet.

The latest Echo Dot device, which launched last September, was purchased by the couple's daughter about two months ago from a big box retail store for about $50. The fire was reported to Amazon, but the family didn't hear back from the online giant after their first call. The Jachym's daughter, Liz, claims that all Amazon said on the initial calls was "pretty much" sorry for your inconvenience, and she noted that it hadn't reached back out to her.

Cleveland Fox affiliate, Fox 8, reached out to Amazon and noted that within hours, Amazon had reached out to the family. Liz stated that an Amazon rep had said a shipping label would be sent so the device could be returned for inspection. Amazon also allegedly offered to send a new Echo Dot. The family wants Amazon to be transparent in its investigation and notes they don't want another Dot in their home. Instead, the family will return the new Echo Dot to the retailer where the burned unit was purchased for a refund.

Amazon's official statement on the incident is, "Amazon takes the safety of its products seriously. We have reached out to this customer and are investigating this matter."