Hoverboards banned in residence halls
Following the lead of other universities across the nation, Central Michigan University has put a ban on hoverboards in residence halls.
Hoverboards are banned in the residence halls only and are still allowed on campus.
“Based on recent fire safety and personal injury concerns raised by the National Fire Protection Association and the Consumer Product Safety Commission, all hoverboards, also known as self-balancing scooters, battery operated scooters, hands-free Segways, are no longer permitted in CMU residential facilities as of March 7,” said an email sent to students regarding the ban.
The ban on hoverboards includes the use, operation, charging, carrying or storing in residence halls.
“What’s happening nation-wide is that the lithium batteries in the hoverboards are catching on fire during the charging process and sometimes during use,” said Kim Voisin, assistant director of Residence Life. “We feel very uncomfortable having hoverboards (with) that potential in the residence halls. So we made the decision, following many other universities, to ban them.”
Nationally, manufacturers of hoverboards have been urged to double-check their products and make sure it is compliant with U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commissions regulations, released on Feb. 18. Hoverboards that do not meet these standards can be subjected to recall.
Lithium batteries in hover boards must be tested in accordance with the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria to ensure that they have been properly manufactured, and packaged to maintain integrity during transport. This is mandated through the Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration guidelines on transporting hoverboards.
University officials encouraged students to make arrangements to take these devices home by spring break, which starts on March 5.
If someone were to get caught with a hoverboard in any residence halls, it would be taken from them to be collected later from the CMU Police Department, Voisin said.
IMLeagues and REC*IT, a mobile phone application, gave away three hoverboards in a contest in December 2015.
