A Twilight actor has issued a desperate warning to fans after escaping a terrifying fire in his bedroom, which broke out while he slept.
Justin Chon, who played Bella Swan’s classmate Eric Yorkie in the Twilight films, took to Instagram to share footage of his room in the aftermath of the blaze that was sparked when a lithium-ion portable battery charger exploded on his bed.
“So this just set my room on fire,” he began in a video that featured his charcoaled and charred mattress.
The 44-year-old, who is sharing his ordeal to help others be more vigilant, explained that he went to sleep while his mobile phone was charging on a lithium-ion portable charger, connected via the MagSafe attachment. But he was soon woken up by a strange sound.
“All of a sudden I heard this hissing sound – the battery exploded,” he recalled. “I woke up and the entire right side of my bed was in flames. The flames were about two to three feet [60 to 90cm] high. My pillow was on fire and the entire carpet was a blaze.”
Chon – who is also a director with four film under his belt: Gook, Ms. Purple, Blue Bayou, and Jamojaya – told his followers that if ever they notcie their lithium-ion battery chargers “start to swell” or start to “get puffy”, they should “be careful” and “throw that sh*t out right away because it can explode”.
“What happens is the cell walls they start to break down, the negative and positive start touching, and it creates heat and makes the battery unstable,” he believed.
The Korean-American filmmaker and actor said that he was lucky to be alive because if the battery was positioned on another angle on his bed, he could have been badly burnt.
“Luckily, I woke up in time and I was able to put it out pretty quickly, but it still lit the entire side of my mattress on fire,” he said. “If that battery’s angle was a little bit differently, I would have lit on fire.”
“Stay alive,” he concluded.
The number of lithium-ion devices found in Australian homes has soared in the last few years. Research by insurer IAG, released in January as reported in news.com.au, predicts that this year the average Aussie household will contain around 33 lithium-ion powered devices, significantly increasing the risk of battery-related fires.
According to the findings, danger rises sharply when batteries are damaged, exposed to saltwater flooding, charged incorrectly or repeatedly knocked.
Shawn Ticehurst, Head of the IAG Research Centre, said the rapid growth of Australia’s lithium-ion battery market was outpacing the development of safety standards.
“Consumers can easily purchase low-quality, often untested products online, and they aren’t getting the information they need about safe charging practices,” Ticehurst said.
“By better understanding how battery condition and charging habits contribute to fire risk, we can help establish the guidelines needed to keep people safe.”
Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) recorded a 12.2 per cent rise in micromobility battery-related fire incidents in 2025 compared to 2024, which included devices such as e-bikes and e-scooters.
However, incidents involving small portable devices dropped by 14.3 per cent, falling from 112 in 2024 to 96 in 2025.
Postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Adelaide Dr Gemeng Liang told news.com.au users have to take simple steps to avoid fires.
He said this includes making sure batteries and chargers are certified, keeping them away from heat sources and flammable materials such as bedsheets and couches while charging, and avoiding overcharging.