Lithium-ion batteries used in electronic bikes and scooters caused more fires in the last two months than in all of 2019, the New York City Fire Department’s (FDNY) chief fire marshall has told the New York Post.
The FDNY recorded 30 fires involving lithium batteries in 2019, a number that more than tripled to 104 in 2021, and soared to 268 last year. In the first two months of 2024, 31 such fires had already been recorded, with the blazes causing 26 injuries and one death, according to figures cited by the Post.
Indian journalist Fazil Khan was killed last week when a lithium ion battery caught fire in the hallway of a Harlem apartment. Residents on higher floors were trapped inside the building, with 18 other people suffering injuries.
Chief Fire Marshall Daniel Flynn told the newspaper that e-bikes and scooters soared in popularity during the coronavirus pandemic, when unemployed people bought the devices to work in “gig economy” delivery jobs.