Fire in Manhattan caused by a lithium battery leaves at least 38 injured
At least 38 people were injured this Saturday in Manhattan after a fire caused by a lithium battery from an electric bicycleaccording to the Fire Department of New York (FDNY).
According to FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh, at least two of the people remain in critical condition and five are in critical condition.
For his part, chief firefighter Daniel E. Flynn stated that on the floor of the apartment building where the fire occurred there were electric bicycles, and that the resident of the apartment was engaged in fixing them. At the moment it is investigating whether the business was legal, reported the Efe agency.
Witnesses collected images of the smoke as it came out of one of the apartments in the 429 building on 52nd Street, in Manhattan, in addition to the spectacular rescue of a woman by the facade, by means of a rope that was attached to the roof.
Flynn pointed out to the media that so far this year there have been 200 fires caused by lithium batterieswith a fatal balance of six people.
The New York Prosecutor’s Office promoted a screen in September to distribute informative brochures in several languages with recommendations for loading, maintenance and storage, after in 2021 four people died and 79 were injured by lithium batteries.
Officials from the prosecutor’s office warned that the batteries of electric bikes used by thousands of home delivery drivers are more likely to catch fire than a traditional battery because they are lithium-ion and have greater energy storage capacity.
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