Terrifying footage has shown the moment an e-bike battery bursting into flames after being plugged into an incompatible charger, completely engulfing a room within just a few minutes.
And a safety expert have taken the opportunity to reinforce the vital safety message, warning the consequences of plugging into the wrong equipment can ultimately prove fatal – while one Londoner shared a story of his terrifying brush with death.
A survey of 1,000 e-bike and e-scooter owners across the UK questioned between June 30 and July 7, and commissioned by Electrical Safety First charity, suggests that 43 percent use a different after-market charger to charge their e-bike or e-scooter.
Alarmingly, almost 20 percent of those surveyed said their charger was not compatible with the voltage of their battery, while 44 percent admitted to charging their vehicle in a communal area and 14 percent said they charged it in their bedroom.
In the 30-second film, the battery pumps out toxic white smoke.
Within seconds, sparks and flames erupt from the battery, filling the entire screen, as thermal runaway commences, consuming the battery as it shoots around the room as a result of the enormous amount of energy being released.
Scott Angus, 32, from London, provided an alarming first-hand account of his close shave after a neighbour’s e-bike exploded into flames last year in the communal hallway of a converted Victorian house where he, his girlfriend and their dog lived.
Because it blocking their escape route, he, his partner and dog were forced to jump from the second-floor window to escape the fire.
He said: “I was woken up around 1am to the strong smell of carbon. I opened the door and all I could see was a wall of thick black smoke. If that smoke had got inside our flat any sooner, I probably wouldn’t be here.”
Mr Angus continued: “Our main way out was blocked.
“I panicked, phoned the fire brigade and saw my partner jump from our second-floor window onto a ledge 10 feet below.
“I grabbed our dog and jumped for my life onto the same ledge.
“An e-bike battery was being charged on the ground floor in the building’s communal hallway caught fire, it blocked our escape route, and we had no way out except for the windows.”
Firefighters rescued all three, and their neighbours, using ladders, Mr Angus continued.
He added: “When we got down, all I could see was chaos. The front door to the building had been blasted off. The fire brigade were trying to put the fire out and I could see lots of individual batteries all over the floor. They looked like shotgun cartridges.
“My partner damaged her back when she jumped and she’s had issued with it ever since, it’s impacted her quality of life.
“Our possessions were so badly damaged from smoke and heat, our clothes, bikes and even the headboard of our bed were ruined. We just feel lucky to have escaped with our lives.”
Others have not been so fortunate, with eight people known to have died as a result of e-bike battery fires this year alone.
Last month, Gemma Germeney, 31, eight-year-old Lilly Peden, and Oliver Peden, four, all died after a blaze at their home in Cambridge which firefighters believes was caused by an e-bike which was being charged.
Giuseppe Capanna, Product Safety Engineer of Electrical Safety First, commented: “Incorrectly charging your e-bike or e-scooter battery comes at a dangerous cost.
“Due to the large amount of energy stored in these batteries, the risk of fire is significantly higher if the battery becomes unstable.
“It’s essential that you use a compatible charger, ideally the one that that came with the device and never block any exit ways when charging, the results could be fatal.”
