via Zerohedge:
Electric bicycles were responsible for a record number of fires, injuries and deaths in New York City last year.
In total, e-bikes caused 267 fires, causing 18 deaths and 150 injuries in the city, the New York Fire Department (FDNY) told Fox News, which notes that the figures represent the highest levels of each statistic – with deaths jumping 200% and fires increasing 21% over last year.
“As we rely more and more on micromobility vehicles to earn a living in our daily lives, we increase the risk of fires caused by lithium-ion batteries. And as mentioned, we had over 100 deaths in this city alone on these batteries,” said Mayor Eric Adams (D) during an e-bike safety event last year.
When we tell you unregulated, illegal lithium-ion batteries are a hazard, WE MEAN IT. FDNY Fire Inspectors continue to check e-bike & e-scooter shops to ensure compliance, but many of devices & batteries are in private homes. They’re ticking time bombs, just watch our new PSA. pic.twitter.com/Y4Pl2grR80
— FDNY (@FDNY) January 16, 2024
“And one of the problems that we’ve noticed, when you look at those taped-up batteries, you see that they are refurbished,” he continued. “These shops are going inside attempting to refurbish the batteries and do it their own way. This is a safety issue.”