Two people in Nanjing have been left dead in a fire that appears to be the result of an electric bike charging. It’s a tragedy highlighting the genuine dangers posed by the carelessness of those thinking of convenience over safety.
The fire broke out on 12 December, in a fourth floor apartment in the Yueyuan Yicun Residential Community off Yingyuan Nan Lu in Nanjing’s Xuanwu District, not far from Hongshan Forest Zoo.
During the blaze, the owner of the property, a man said to be in his 40s, successfully led his wife to safety to then return inside the apartment to look for their 18 year old son.
Tragically, however, both the man and his son died in the blaze. The fire had also spread to, and largely engulfed, the apartments above on the fifth and sixth floors.
The following day, 13 December, staff at Hongshan Police Station told reporters that the fire was the result of the charging of an e-bike’s battery. Police are continuing their investigations, reports The Paper.
The two deaths remind of another tragic fire in Nanjing, back in August of 2020, as this publication reported at the time.
That was when a fire from the battery of an e-bike parked in a typical alleyway spread to the adjacent residential building, torching an apartment therein.
The fire quickly spread to other electric bikes parked nearby. Before long, a large blaze ascended the adjacent building, setting fire to a third floor apartment. The fire caused the deaths of three females therein; a mother and daughter plus another family relative.
The owner of the bike was arrested on suspicion of causing the fire after having spent ¥13,000 on customising the bike. Among the modifications was the installation of a battery other than the factory standard.
In subsequent legal hearings, it was found that the owner’s actions in modifying the e-bike presented a possible safety hazard that could have been foreseen. The owner was sentenced to serve a prison term of 3 and half years.
The message should by now be clear; electric bike batteries are a potential fire hazard. Readers of The Nanjinger are reminded that electric bikes should not be charged at home and neither should any battery other than the factory standard be utilised.
