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A North Carolina woman enjoying her time at home was shocked when she thought her house was rocked by an earthquake. It turns out, it was her new refrigerator exploding in the kitchen.
Lenore Satterthwaite said she was minding her business in her home when a sudden loud noise erupted, per ABC 11. When she went to examine what made the ruckus, she found that her Frigidaire refrigerator, which she purchased less than a year ago, had exploded and sent debris throughout the kitchen. Aside from the ruined debris of the fridge itself, the explosion damaged the stove, some furniture and even the walls.
"I just thought it was an earthquake, big explosion," she recalled. "I was on the computer, I thought it was an earthquake it was so loud and I came in and the doors were on the floor."
Satterthwaite immediately called 911 and firefighters responded to the scene, but, according to the Person County Fire Marshall, the cause of the explosion couldn't be determined. Officials ruled out both an electrical fire, adding that nothing within the house led to the explosion. They believe something within the refrigerator itself cause it to explode.
The explosion, while certainly unexpected, didn't fully come out of nowhere. The refrigerator had been making a loud noise recently, so Satterthwaite had a technician evaluate it for a warranty repair mere days before it exploded. The technician reportedly said the fan wasn't working correctly to keep the internal temperature regulated, but the fridge exploded before the fan could be replaced.
Fortunately for Satterthwaite, her homeowner's insurance covered the cost of the damage and no one was injured in the explosion.
"I hate for someone to go through what I'm going through, I could have gotten seriously hurt," she said.
A representative with Frigidaire has reached out to Satterthwaite to learn more about the strange incident, telling ABC 11, "Consumer safety is our top priority. ... We are actively reviewing her product and service information records."