An electrical bike parked close to a Bronx grocery store that was destroyed in a hearth that officers say was brought on by a defective lithium-ion scooter battery.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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Spencer Platt/Getty Images
An electrical bike parked close to a Bronx grocery store that was destroyed in a hearth that officers say was brought on by a defective lithium-ion scooter battery.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
As firefighters battled a five-alarm hearth at a grocery store within the Bronx earlier this month, New York City officers gathered beside what they mentioned was the reason for the fireplace: the blackened shell of what was as soon as a sit-on electrical scooter.
Officials mentioned {that a} defective lithium-ion battery within the scooter had all of the sudden burst into flame, as captured on surveillance video. The ensuing hearth was so intense, they mentioned, that it enveloped the constructing in a matter of minutes.
“There is extraordinary harm. This total constructing behind me is totally destroyed. The roof is caved in. There is nothing left. And it’s all due to this one single bike,” mentioned Laura Kavanaugh, town’s hearth commissioner.
Last week’s blaze joined the greater than 200 fires in New York City final 12 months brought on by batteries from e-bikes, electrical scooters and comparable units. Lithium-ion battery explosions at the moment are the third main explanation for fires within the metropolis, the fireplace division says.
Per FDNY Fire Marshals, the reason for immediately’s 5-alarm hearth at 2096 Grand Concourse within the Bronx was a lithium-ion battery which powered a scooter. pic.twitter.com/HTifRojiJo
— FDNY (@FDNY) March 5, 2023
As the recognition of so-called micromobility units has soared throughout the U.S., so too have risen the variety of fires related to the lithium-ion batteries that energy them.
Some lawmakers and federal regulators have taken word. Late final 12 months, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission introduced it had obtained stories of greater than 200 incidents for the reason that begin of 2021 through which micromobility units caught hearth or overheated — incidents that led to the deaths of 19 individuals.
“Destructive and lethal fires from lithium-ion batteries in e-bikes have reached a disaster stage. The tragic lack of life from battery fires is heartbreaking and preventable,” mentioned Commissioner Richard Trumka in December.
Read on for extra about why these fires are occurring and preserve your self secure:
Why are batteries in e-bikes and scooters weak to catching hearth?
Lithium-ion batteries energy many rechargeable units which are a part of our trendy lives: cell telephones, laptops, vapes, cordless energy instruments and electrical autos of all types, from vehicles to scooters to e-bikes to hoverboards.
They’re small, light-weight and highly effective — however they’re additionally susceptible to overheating and catching hearth, mentioned Michael Pecht, a professor of engineering on the University of Maryland. “Ever since lithium-ion batteries began to be prevalent in merchandise, we have seen fires,” he mentioned.
At concern is the excessive density of the batteries, which is a double-edged sword, mentioned Pecht, who additionally serves as director of the Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering, a college analysis heart that consults with firms on reliability and issues of safety, together with batteries.
“They can present lots of energy to our cell telephones and to our computer systems for a comparatively lengthy time period in a really small quantity,” he mentioned. “But as a result of now we have a lot power packed in that small quantity, if there’s a downside, then they’re very flammable.”
Defects or contamination within the manufacturing course of can finally result in quick circuiting or different failures.
In 2006, Dell, Apple and different main laptop computer makers urged tens of millions of consumers to return laptop computer batteries after Sony found a flaw of their battery manufacturing course of. Chevy, Hyundai and Chrysler have all been pressured to concern recollects over battery fires in electrical autos. The Federal Aviation Administration reported greater than 60 incidents final 12 months through which lithium-ion batteries — principally battery packs, vapes or cell telephones — overheated, started smoking or caught hearth on airplanes.
Why do there appear to be extra e-bike- and scooter-related fires now?
In quick, there are extra fires as a result of there are such a lot of extra e-bikes and scooters as of late.
Their small dimension and low price relative to gas-powered autos have made micromobility units a sexy transportation and recreation possibility for tens of millions of Americans. That’s very true for these dwelling in city areas the place parking and visitors are challenges for drivers. Electric bikes and scooters have additionally been embraced by supply drivers.
The burst in reputation is so current that there is not but a lot strong knowledge about what number of e-bikes, scooters and different units are offered annually.
But what info we do have exhibits that their numbers are rising quickly. The Light Electric Vehicle Association, an trade group, estimates that about 880,000 e-bikes have been imported to the U.S. in 2021. That’s about double the quantity imported in 2020, and thrice the whole from 2019.
More units means extra fires, consultants say, particularly for the reason that trade is comparatively new and unregulated, and there are lots of totally different firms and merchandise available on the market.
What’s being carried out about it?
There’s not presently a lot regulation of e-bikes and scooters.
Regulation may go in a number of instructions. One can be to require units be licensed underneath the security requirements really helpful by Underwriter Laboratories, a gaggle that has produced security certifications for electrical merchandise for over a century.
Earlier this month, the New York City Council handed a package deal of native payments that will require all e-bikes and different electrical mobility units offered, rented or leased within the metropolis to be licensed underneath the suitable UL security requirements.
The laws additionally bans the sale of uncertified or used batteries. Retailers discovered to be in violation of the legal guidelines might be fined as much as $1,000 per violation.
At the nationwide stage, the Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a letter in December calling on greater than 2,000 producers, importers and retailers to voluntarily adhere to UL security requirements for e-bikes and different micromobility units.
Following the rules “considerably reduces the danger of accidents and deaths from micromobility machine fires,” wrote Robert Kaye, the company’s director of compliance and subject operations. “Consumers face an unreasonable threat of fireside and threat severe damage or demise if their micromobility units don’t meet the extent of security supplied by the related UL requirements.”
Additionally, the company has vowed to pursue penalties towards firms who fail to tell the CPSC of security hazards.
Recommendations to maintain your self secure
The major suggestion that comes from each the CPSC and the FDNY is to be current whilst you’re charging your machine, and to not cost it whilst you’re sleeping. Unplug the machine as soon as it’s absolutely charged.
The CPSC additionally recommends that you simply solely use the charger that got here included along with your machine and to comply with the producer’s directions for correct charging.
Fire officers add that you need to cost your machine away from flammable supplies like furnishings and pillows, and that you simply should not cost or retailer your machine in a location that blocks your entry to an exit.
When you are shopping for an e-bike or different micromobility machine, attempt to discover what battery comes stocked with it, Pecht mentioned. Does the maker of the machine state the place the battery is sourced from? Is the battery made by a good producer? Experts additionally counsel that customers search for batteries which have a UL certification.
Be warned that some on-line sellers might falsely declare to have UL certification. Others might promote “re-wrapped” batteries, that means counterfeit batteries produced to seem as if they’re made by respected producers.
If your battery begins to fail, it could be most secure to purchase a brand new one. “Don’t restore something your self, and purchase from an organization the place you realize that they are utilizing brand-name batteries,” Pecht mentioned. It may go greatest to purchase a brand new battery from the identical firm that produced your bike or scooter.
To eliminate an outdated battery, convey it to a battery recycling heart or different e-waste facility. Don’t throw away lithium-ion batteries in typical trash.