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The Military United States Hardware Technology

US Navy Bans Vaping On Ships (go.com) 230

Posted by BeauHD from the safety-first dept.
The U.S. Navy announced today that it will no longer allow sailors to use electronic cigarettes on ships, following several reports of explosives and injuries. ABC News reports: Naval commanders said in a statement Friday that the temporary electronic cigarette policy aims to protect sailors and the fleet. It starts next month. Officials cited overheated batteries in vaping equipment as the problem. Explosions have led to fires, first-degree burns and facial disfigurement. During a recent eight-month stretch, 12 incidents put sailors out of work for a combined 77 days. Injuries also restricted some to light duty for a total of five months.
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US Navy Bans Vaping On Ships More

US Navy Bans Vaping On Ships

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  • The bigger fish they should be frying should be the "crippling construction defects" affecting their newer ships [consortiumnews.com]other than focusing on minor issues like vaping in my opinion.

  • If you enlist, you take orders, PERIOD. (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward

    There is no military draft right now.

    That means that 100% of the personnel in the Navy are in the Navy because they
    CHOSE to be in the navy.

    If you fuckers in the Navy don't like being told what you cannot do, you shouldn't have enlisted.

    What a bunch of pussies. If you were being shot at, you'd quit whining about vaping damned quick.

    • As you did, one can easily state that giving and taking orders is the prime mode of operation in leadership, and in the meantime it is.

      However especially in times of crisis you need soft skills, you need to have leadership to build up a working team a unit of individuals that works seamlessly, is mentally stable.

      A crisis situation will draw out the real personality of a human and a solid team will stick together and control the extremes.

      And part of that is team building encouragement and a certain amount of

      • The Navy is only banning vaping on shippings and I can see the reasoning for it. While vaping may be better for your health long term the situation on board a ship is a bit different. First of all, you're on a ship. You don't have access to expert medical facilities so while vape devices have thus far only caused 77 days worth of injuries, they've been minor enough that they could be handled by the ship's medbay. There's likely a concern here regarding a more severe injury and the isolation from higher qual

  • Dumb (Score:5, Insightful)

    by somenickname ( 1270442 ) on Friday April 14, 2017 @08:28PM (#54237821)

    Why not, I dunno, sell government approved vape pens in the commissary? From what I've read, most of the incidents with vaping are from people trying to "soup up" their vape machines. This amounts to banning Honda Civics on base because a few ill informed morons cause them to ignite by modifying them in ways they don't really understand.

    • Re:Dumb (Score:5, Interesting)

      by swb ( 14022 ) on Friday April 14, 2017 @08:33PM (#54237837)

      My guess is that it's a result of the endless race to see who can pump the most watts into a sub-ohm coil with the cheapest cells they can find. There's a point at which it turns into something like shorting out a lithium battery.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Bomazi ( 1875554 )

        No, they are just holding them wrong.

        • No, they are just holding them wrong.

          Don't try to blame this on Apple. Those vape pen are running Samsung firmware, those sailors must have accidentally activated 'incendiary grenade mode'.

          • No, they are just holding them wrong.

            Don't try to blame this on Apple. Those vape pen are running Samsung firmware, those sailors must have accidentally activated 'incendiary grenade mode'.

            Nah, they were made by Zorg Industries right alongside their (in)famous ZF-1 infantry weapon systems, complete with the little red button.

            No, of course the OP is right, every similar vaping incident I've heard about was ultimately the result of ignorant and stupid people doing Tim Allen/'Tool Time' impersonations trying to "give it more *power*! ugh-ugh!" with their vaping gear.

            Instead of throwing FDA regulations at the vaping industry to try to cripple it because it thr

      • Comment removed based on user account deletion

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by swb ( 14022 )

          I'm sort of willing to grant them leeway on the batteries, especially if its a mod that uses 18650s. Finding legitimate ones isn't easy. I actually bite the bullet and buy them from established brick and mortar vape shops because of all the fakes.

          But even with the fixed batteries most common in the 50-100 watt regulated mods I'm sorta skeptical, especially with vape gear brand identity kind of sketchy outside of a handful of brands that have been around (Kanger, Smok, etc).

      • There's a point at which someone wins that race, and is rewarded with spectacular effects... /sarcasm

        Beside the unlucky vapers who don't have a clue what they're doing but -indeed- chose the cheapest gear they could find (especially batteries).

      • My guess is that it's a result of the endless race to see who can pump the most watts into a sub-ohm coil with the cheapest cells they can find.

        By people who wouldn't know an Ohm if a Volt kicked them in the ass.

    • More like they don't want a lithium battery fire on a billion dollar carrier.

      • So... they should remove all ordnance from the ship as well.

        • Ordnance and its handling procedures are designed to be safe. Vaping devices are designed to be cheap.

          • No, vaping devices are designed to be safe as well, if purchased from legit places, not fake and handled as they are supposed to be handled. Just like ordnance and everything else, really.

    • The problem is batteries. Choosing the right type isn't hard, and despite what someone lower in this thread said, there are lithium batteries that can safely source huge currents. Probably not a dead short, but >20 watts for sure.

      The problem is getting the right batteries. Say you've selected a high current UR18650WX battery - where do you get it? Amazon? Good luck, half of those are counterfeits. eBay? Same, but maybe 75%. Random internet store? Eww. Local vape shop? Ha!

      Oh, did I mention that

    • Why not, I dunno, sell government approved vape pens in the commissary? From what I've read, most of the incidents with vaping are from people trying to "soup up" their vape machines. This amounts to banning Honda Civics on base because a few ill informed morons cause them to ignite by modifying them in ways they don't really understand.

      No, it's more like banning Ford Pinto's on a facility full of powerful conventional ordinance and nuclear weapons.

      • Why not, I dunno, sell government approved vape pens in the commissary? From what I've read, most of the incidents with vaping are from people trying to "soup up" their vape machines. This amounts to banning Honda Civics on base because a few ill informed morons cause them to ignite by modifying them in ways they don't really understand.

        No, it's more like banning Ford Pinto's on a facility full of powerful conventional ordinance and nuclear weapons.

        Actually, it's banning all wheeled conveyances with combustion engines because someone kept insisting on driving the Pinto. If they'd just ban the 'Pinto' equivalent but let people drive, er, use other reliable models without the inherent design flaws, no problem! Oh, and make modding them a bustable (brigable?) offense, since that shit makes even a trustworthy brand unreliable.

  • At Work (Score:1, Insightful)

    by kackle ( 910159 )
    I wish they would ban this in my workplace. It's smoking, lite, isn't it?

    • Re:At Work (Score:4, Insightful)

      by sjames ( 1099 ) on Friday April 14, 2017 @10:38PM (#54238303) Homepage Journal

      Only if you consider yourself to be smoking coffee if you can smell it.

      • Vaping people don't smell like coffee, the ones I know smell like strawberry bubble gum and other chemicals.

        • Re:At Work (Score:5, Insightful)

          by markdavis ( 642305 ) on Saturday April 15, 2017 @03:29AM (#54238953)

          >"Vaping people don't smell like coffee, the ones I know smell like strawberry bubble gum and other chemicals."

          And food doesn't smell like chocolate but like pig and fish and other chemicals. (Highly offensive to a vegetarian)

          See how silly that sounds? It depends on what people are vaping. There are lots that have almost no smell. Being annoying is not the fault of vaping, it is the fault of what they select. So instruct people to not use stupid smelling stuff. I have been around both types before (smelly and non-smelly) so I know there are differences.

          Cars with illegally modified exhaust systems are loud and annoying. Ban all cars.

          Some motorcycle drivers speed recklessly and weave between cars without using turn signals or leaving adequate clearance. Ban all motorcycles.

          People blasting rap "music" is loud and annoying. Ban all stereos.

          People wearing lots of perfume is horrible and annoying. Ban all toiletries.

          Light pollution destroys the night sky and is annoying. Ban all lights.

          People that walk into traffic looking at phones is unsafe and dangerous. Ban all phones.

          Drunk people who pee on walls is gross and annoying. Ban all alcohol.

          Guns are sometimes used by some bad people to illegally hurt other people (usually bad people), unlike 99.9999% of good gun owners. Ban all guns.

          I could go on, but I think my point is made. There is always a small minority of people that will ruin ANYTHING for everyone else. So back to the actual topic....

          A small fraction of people vaping modify their equipment with cheap crap to do things that are unsafe and stupid. And a small percent of THOSE people cause negative incidents (which is no surprise). That is not a good reason to ban all vaping.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by sjames ( 1099 )

          That depends on their choice of vape. I have a coffee vape that I like. The biggest danger of it is people get their hopes up only to find that there is no coffee available.

          Do you also get upset when someone walking by is chewing artificially flavored strawberry bubblegum?

  • The vapers I run across seem to have the attitude of "it ain't tobacco, nobody has proved it hurts anyone, lets see how much of this shit I can put into the air".

    None of my friends vape, and I'll never be friends with a vaper.

    Then again, I'm 58 and have yet to run into a vaper over 30. Don't trust anyone under 30 someone famous almost said 40 years ago.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by sjames ( 1099 )

      Congratulations, you have just run into a vaper over 30.

    • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

      by Norman Haga ( 4922743 )
      I think you may be a little uniformed. I am near 60 and I vape. So what's my story? I tried quitting smoking for ten years and failed. Started vaping and I have not had a cigarette in two and one half years. I have had two heart attacks, two pulmonary embolisms, and have two stents from smoking. I could feel a difference in my health within a few days after starting to vape. Is nicotine safe? Probably not. Is it safer than the 3000+ harmful components of the typical American chemical laden cigarette? Certai

    • You must have a very limited circle of acquaintances.
      I know vapers of all ages, from 18 to 80, quite literally.

      "I'll never be friends with a vaper" makes you sound retarded, because the reason you provide is retarded.

    • Vaping weed provides wayyyy less offence to most around you. Vape pens are the new normal in dispensary land.

  • Good ole cigarettes are better for you. (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward

    No surprise there. Also, you get the added benefit of not looking like a pussy.

  • Buy sub-standard shit, and reap the rewards. Laptops, phones, "hoverboards", e-cigs, whatever. Chinese crap.

  • Wow (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 14, 2017 @11:40PM (#54238505)

    I'm frankly very surprised by the extreme lack of any understanding of what vaping is, how electronic cigarettes work, in even the most general sense, or what's in e liquid or the vapor. There has been basically no correct information stated anywhere in this whole comment section, except that the actual cause of these injuries is cheap, low quality, Chinese batteries.

    Vaping is a harm reduction activity, for people who have been unsuccessful trying to quit smoking. If you can't get off nicotine, better to get it from vaping than smoking. The Royal College of Physicians in the U.K. estimates vaping is approximately 95% less harmful than cigarettes. You can think what you want, but if you think it's just as bad as cigarettes, you are an idiot. It's also not water vapor being exhaled. I'm not sure where that ever came from, but in it's attempt to make vaping sound safe, it instead makes anyone who repeats it sound stupid. There's no reason for most people to care about vaping unless they know someone who does it, but just know, it's keeping someone from smoking, and that should be reason enough to be ok with at, as long as they don't blow it right in your face.

      I agree that the young crowd who only want to blow huge clouds are ruining it for everyone else, but if it's keeping them off combustible cigarettes, it's still ok with me.

  • I think it's time to call it. Vaping industry at large is wholly incompetent.

    • Re:More dangerous than fire? (Score:4, Informative)

      by sl3xd ( 111641 ) on Saturday April 15, 2017 @01:37AM (#54238757) Journal

      And yet, the industry continues to be outpaced by its addicts, asserting endless false claims about safety.

      Flavorings often do horrible things to the lungs, sinuses, and nose - a great example, diacetyl causes "popcorn lung". Diacetyl is found in a lot of foods naturally - its what gives butter its flavor, after all. It's a natural product of fermentation, and shows up in everything from buttermilk to chardonnay.

      Popcorn lung is a great example of what vaping can do - take a natural flavor, heat it with water to form steam, inhale, and cause permanent lung damage only treatable by organ transplant.

      But, much like smoking was a few decades ago, it's users refuse to believe their addiction could possibly be harmful to themselves or others.

  • so now... (Score:3)

    by drewsup ( 990717 ) on Saturday April 15, 2017 @02:03AM (#54238797)

    sailors will go back to cigarettes.... way to reduce the pension fund? After all, dead sailors dont cost anything, but the lung damage will cost a lot in their final few years of life. This is ridiculous, just set a mil spec standard, let the free market meet that demand, the majority of battery fires are due to cheap ass Chinese crap or as other posters said, heavy mods done incorrectly.

  • maybe they should be used in Afghanistan. Cheaper than dropping that MOAB [bbc.co.uk]! :-)

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