Teenager's Car Explodes Because of Deodorant

A teenager's new car exploded after he used deodorant spray to polish his dashboard and then lit a cigarette, igniting the aerosol's fumes.

The doors blew out and the windows shattered - the windscreen was found metres away down the driveway of his home.

It all started when the 16 year-old Jayme Edmonds went to his car just before midnight - dressed only in his boxer shorts - to have a cigarette and listen to his stereo. In the car were two bottles of Lynx deodorant (better known as Axe in North American and Europe).

Jayme's Honda was a recent purchase and he was worried about some paint stains on the inside door, so while he was there, he began spraying from the aerosol can on to the car and rubbing the stains off with a towel.

"Then I lit the smoke and this big ball of fire went up. I knew my hands were burned because I picked up this towel to try to save my stereo, only the towel was on fire. It was a blur. I just remember all the heat coming up my body."

The explosion shattered two windows of his family's van parked about 3m away and woke up the neighbourhood.

"I've never heard anything so loud in my life", his mother said.

Jayme singed his hair, eyebrows and nostrils, but it was about half an hour before he realised the extent of his injuries. He spent three days in hospital and nine more days off school recovering after the blast.

Unilever Australasia spokesman Nick Goddard said the deodorant was clearly marked "highly flammable", before adding, "We hope the young man is not too seriously hurt".

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