Two people are in critical condition and five in serious condition, according to the fire department.
A total of 38 people have had to be treated this Saturday by medical services in the New York neighborhood of Manhattanas a result of a fire caused by a lithium battery from an electric bicycle, reported the New York Fire Department. At least two of the affected people are in critical condition and five are in serious condition, said the fire department commissioner, Laura Kavanagh.
Several people collected images of the dense smoke coming out of one of the apartments in the building number 429 on 52nd Street, in Manhattan, as well as the cumbersome rescue of a woman from the front, by means of a rope attached to the roof of the building. In statements to the media, Fire Chief Daniel E. Flynn assured that on the same floor there were at least five electric bikes and that the resident of the apartment was dedicated to fixing them. They are currently investigating whether his business was legal.
The cause of this fire is a lithium ion battery which is meant to power a micro mobility device – #FDNY Chief Fire Marshal Daniel Flynn on the cause of this morning’s 3-alarm fire at 429 East 52nd Street in Manhattan. Readmore: https://t.co/V0Dx3dpZUi pic.twitter.com/SNYsEgf8Kr
— FDNY (@FDNY) November 5, 2022
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Flynn recalled that so far this year they have registered 200 fires caused by lithium batteries in which six people have died. The authorities have warned on numerous occasions about the dangers of these batteries and have launched campaigns to raise public awareness. Last September, the New York Prosecutor’s Office launched a campaign to distribute information brochures in several languages with recommendations for their loading, storage and maintenance, after they were registered in 2021. 4 dead and 79 wounded from fires caused by these batteries.
The prosecutor’s office then warned that the batteries of the electric bicycles used by thousands of home delivery men, being lithium-ion and having a greater energy storage capacity, “are more likely to catch fire than a traditional battery” .