According to FDNY officials on Tuesday, a massive fire that ravaged a single-family home in Queens was caused by a lithium-ion battery that exploded in an illegal e-bike repair shop located in the basement.
Around 7:30 p.m., firefighters responded to a basement fire on Pidgeon Meadow Road, across the street from Flushing Cemetery, near 164th St. in Fresh Meadows. The FDNY reported on X that they had discovered 100 lithium-ion batteries burning in the cellar.
The department said that the proprietor was running an illicit lithium-ion battery repair company. Lithium-ion batteries and other micro-mobility devices were discovered at varied levels of disassembly and damage.
It took three and a half hours to extinguish the fire, which attracted over 60 firefighters and emergency medical workers.
There were no reported injuries.
In addition to the burning batteries, 600 separate battery cells were discovered from the basement by an FDNY hazmat team.
The owner of the single-family home was served with a criminal court summons by the FDNY Bureau of Fire Prevention for unlawfully keeping e-mobility equipment. The owner was additionally cited by the FDNY for many fire code infractions.
According to officials, as of Monday, the FDNY had put out 172 lithium-ion battery fires so far this year, five more than at this time last year.
According to police, a 76-year-old grandmother was killed on July 4 at a pizzeria in Queens when she was stuck inside the restroom due to an e-bike battery.
This year’s first fatality from a lithium-ion battery fire in the city was the grandmother, Yuet Kiu Cheung.
According to FDNY officials, six people lost their lives in citywide lithium-ion battery fires last year. 18 persons lost their lives in e-bike or e-scooter fires in 2023.
According to FDNY investigators and battery specialists, the exploding electrical devices are typically purchased from local scooter shops or online to replace or supplement the batteries that come with scooters or e-bikes as original equipment rather than being certified by Underwriters Laboratories or another safety inspection company.
In order to keep their e-bikes and scooters charged all the time, many delivery workers purchase a stock of fake backup batteries.
The FDNY launched a significant public service announcement campaign to urge owners of e-bikes and e-scooters to use only factory-installed batteries, avoid charging them overnight, and, if at all possible, keep their bikes outside in response to the rise in lithium-ion battery fires.
Additionally, the department increased inspections at e-bike shops, strengthened its response strategies, and lobbied local lawmakers to outlaw the sale of uncertified lithium-ion batteries.
