The war on hoverboards at college campuses nationwide continues apace, and hoverboards have lost another two battles.
Louisiana State University issued a temporary ban on them that covers “use, possession, or storage” until safety standards improve. Students are encouraged to leave them at home.
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American University in Washingon, D.C. followed suit, adding hoverboards to their list of prohibited items. George Washington University banned them at the beginning of the year, and UCLA banned them from walkways on campus in November.
UCLA feared an “army of walking wounded” would result from inconsiderate or distracted hoverboarders, but collisions aren’t driving most concerns.
The biggest fears are from the hoverboard’s well-documented penchant to burst into flames.
“While the US Consumer Product Safety Commission is now working nonstop to figure out the actual root causes of these incidents, they don’t have the answers yet,” CNet notes.
A Los Angeles man, Delvon Simmons, uploaded a YouTube video of his hoverboard smoking before watching flames overtake it as the fire department arrived to extinguish it.
“All you parents got this for Christmas, if you got this in your house, I suggest you sell it, get rid of it. Otherwise, your house gonna burn down,” Simmons said.
Hoverboard companies aren’t well-established yet, so trusted brands haven’t emerged. Lax safety standards in Chinese factories taking advantage of the fad, and the confusion, have been blamed, but until an investigation by the Consumer Product Safety Commission concludes, it’s only supposition and educated guesses.
For now, hoverboarders will find no friendly concrete around campus.
