By Thomas Tracy
New York Daily News
NEW YORK — The FDNY has seen a startling 53% increase in structural fires linked to exploding lithium-ion batteries this year — a sobering statistic that shows e-bike and scooter owners are not taking seriously warnings about charging the batteries outside, officials said Wednesday.
As of Wednesday, the FDNY has fought 40 building fires across the city in which e-bike batteries have been the cause — 14 more than at this time last year.
The FDNY has put out a new public service announcement titled “Take It Outside” to encourage New Yorkers to charge their lithium-ion mobile devices away from their homes to protect people and their property.
“We want to make sure residents are heeding our warning to charge and store these devices outside, where possible, to avoid the destruction that these intense fires can cause,” FDNY Fire Commissioner Robert Tucker said in a statement Wednesday. “A malfunctioning or uncertified lithium-ion battery can explode at any moment, charging or not, and residents need to take the necessary precautions to stay safe.”
While e-bike fires inside buildings have increased, lithium-ion battery fires that occur outside have dropped from 25 to 19 this year, leading FDNY administrators to believe that e-bike and scooter owners are not taking their warnings seriously enough.
So far, no fatalities have resulted from a lithium-ion battery fire this year, officials said.
In the 30-second clip, filled with the carnage wrought by the dangerous battery fires, the FDNY notes that lithium-ion battery blazes have “leveled entire blocks, wrecked businesses, destroyed homes and killed residents.”
In October, a 34-year-old Bronx man was killed when a charging lithium-ion moped battery set his kitchen on fire, officials said.
In 2019, when the FDNY first started tracking these fires, only 13 blazes were attributed to the batteries. By 2020, the number had more than tripled to 44, according to FDNY officials.
Fire Department investigators and battery experts say the exploding electrical devices are usually not certified by Underwriters Laboratories or another safety inspection company, bought cheap online or in area scooter stores to supplement or replace batteries included with scooters or e-bikes as original equipment.
Many deliveristas buy a supply of knockoff backup batteries so their e-bikes and scooters can stay continuously charged.
As the number of lithium-ion battery fires increased, the FDNY began a massive public service announcement campaign to encourage e-bike and e-scooter owners to use only factory-installed batteries, not charge them overnight, and keep the bikes outside, if possible.
The department also pushed city lawmakers to make the sale of uncertified lithium-ion batteries illegal and ramped up inspections at e-bike stores and improved its response tactics.
As a result, fire deaths caused by lithium-ion batteries dropped from 18 in 2023 to six last year, officials said.
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