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A dad was left needing skin grafts to his scrotum and legs after an electronic cigarette exploded in his pocket without warning.

Darren Wilson, 37, has been in hospital since Friday evening and has had skin grafted from his backside onto severe burns, made worse by acid from the device's battery.

The device was not plugged in and was not being used when it malfunctioned.

The dad-of-three, who owns gas fitting firm DD Wilson, says he is in horrendous pain and needs morphine just to go to the toilet or wash.

Darren, from Kirkby, said he could be in hospital for another fortnight.

(Image: Darren Wilson)

He said: "I have been refurbishing my house. I was stood by the kitchen door and next thing I thought someone had thrown a firework into the doorway.

"I looked down and my pocket was going off like a banger; it was fizzing and sparking and all smoke was coming from it.

(Image: Darren Wilson)

"I was wearing my work pants and tried to get it out, but it burnt through and burnt all my b******s and my left leg.

"I can't walk, I need morphine every time I go to have a shower or wash and clean. They need to re-dress it every eight hours."

Darren says his work colleagues, who were helping him with re-decorating, rushed to help and drove him to Aintree Hospital.

(Image: Darren Wilson)

He said: "It was like my legs were melting, burning and melting, all the way to the hospital."

After some initial treatment at Aintree he was transferred to a major burns unit in Whiston Hospital.

Darren says he began using e-cigarettes after giving up smoking around six months ago.

He said: "I have been trying to get healthy for the last six months since giving up smoking, and I have actually lost two and a half stone.

"I started using e-cigs thinking it would be better for me, more fool me."

(Image: Darren Wilson)

Darren's partner, Claire Mulhearn, said: "I just said to him, you're a gas engineer, you've never had any problems or burns, and you get blown up by an e-cig."

Darren says the e-cigarette was bought from a shop in Walton, and recently had replacement batteries fitted.

Last month the ECHO reported how Walton man Anthony Fogg, 35, was burned when his e-cigarette exploded while being charged.

Anthony was in bed when the explosion occurred, setting fire to the sheets which melted into his skin.

Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service were not required for either incident, but issued advice to e-cigarette users.

A spokesman said: "Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service has attended a number of fires involving e-cigarettes while they were charging.

"Each fire has been thoroughly investigated in order to understand the reasons which led to the fire in the first instance and in order to limit the chance of fires involving electrical items happening again."

Advice to e-cigarette users