Inferno alert on exploding e-cigs: Charging devices now start one fire each week E-cigarette chargers thought to cause at least one blaze every week Eight times more fires involving the gadgets than in 2012, with 62 this year Fire brigades warn users not to plug devices into computers or DVD players Charred debris, blackened walls and melted appliances - these pictures reveal the devastating results when charging electronic cigarettes goes wrong. The devices have been linked to more than a hundred fires in the last three years - and are now reckoned to cause at least one blaze a week. Data from fire services showed there are almost eight times more incidents involving the gadgets than in 2012, rising from just eight that year to at least 62 so far this year. These pictures show the devastation caused when electronic cigarette chargers burst into flames Damage: A fire sparked by a charging e-cigarette, which had been plugged into a computer hard drive Twisted: The charred remains of a charger that started a blaze which severely damaged a house Fire chiefs have issued safety warnings about e-cigarettes, which are used by an estimated 2.1million Britons. They are particularly concerned about users connecting the devices to cheap or incompatible chargers, which can cause them to heat up dangerously. Other fires are started when e-cigarettes are plugged into computers or DVD players to charge, the data from 43 of the 51 fire services in the UK revealed. And incompatible chargers can even cause a small explosion if the battery fails. Martyn Allen, of charity Electrical Safety First, said: "Fires caused by charging e-cigarettes are a growing problem and we are becoming increasingly concerned. People buy cheap or incompatible chargers for many reasons - often to save a few pounds - but you have to ask whether this is worth risking lives for. Last year Evelyn Raywood, 68, died after a blaze at her care home in Derbyshire appeared to be started by a charging battery pack. In August David Thomson, 62, was killed when a charging e-cigarette exploded and ignited oxygen equipment in his home. Barmaid Laura Baty was burned when her e-cigarette exploded while it was charging The e-cigarette chargers have been linked to hundreds of fires and now thought to cause at least one blaze every week Others have been injured by the devices, including a man left with burns and a woman who suffered smoke inhalation after a charging e-cigarette set fire to their bedroom curtains in Kilkeel, Northern Ireland. Other incidents included a resident in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, waking up to find flames at the bottom of their bed after an e-cigarette was plugged into a laptop. Mark Hazelton, of the Chief Fire Officers Association, said: "The fear behind it is we could see more incidents because it is a really big, growing market ... We are monitoring it to see if it is a rising trend. Describing the dangers of incompatible chargers, he said: "You plug in an e-cigarette that doesn't use an awful lot of current into a charger that does and ... the device starts to heat up. Eventually with most e-cigarettes you get an issue where it spews out one end when the battery fails. A Trading Standards Institute spokesman said there are issues with the devices and official chargers themselves, on top of the dangers of using a different charger.