FDNY: 2 separate fires caused by lithium-ion batteries in 1 day, 1 dead
NEW YORK -- We've now learned two fires in New York City on Friday were caused by lithium-ion batteries, and one of those fires turned deadly.
Video shows flames in between two multi-family homes on Tinton Street in Morrisania section of the Bronx on Friday. Each sustained serious damage, but fire officials say thankfully, there were no reported injuries.
Luis Garcia owns one of the houses and is now living in a hotel.
"There was one guy that had just moved in from a shelter, that I rented him a room, just yesterday. I've never seen something like this," he told CBS New York on Saturday.
- Related story: Mayor Eric Adams: FDNY response to 311 calls about questionable lithium-ion battery charging to happen within 12 hours
Fire officials say the home where the fire started was vacant. The cause was determined to be a lithium-ion battery.
The FDNY said as of July, there have been 87 lithium-ion battery fires causing injuries so far this year and 13 deaths.
"As leaders, I think we should be able to do better than everybody else ... If it's going to be allowed, there has to be a better way for us to do this and to handle it," Garcia said.
Just a couple of hours later Friday afternoon, another fire broke out on 101st Street in Ozone Park, Queens. This fire was fatal, killing 93-year-old Kam Mei Koo, the mother of the building's landlord.
The FDNY points to the same accidental cause -- a lithium-ion battery from an e-bike. The city's Department of Buildings issued a violation for illegal e-bike repairs in the basement.
But what exactly makes these batteries more prone to catch fire?
"All those potholes, every time somebody drops the bike or gets run into," said Rodger Mort, COO of Packaging and Crating Technologies.
Mort's company manufactures fire suppressant Thermo Shield paper and the LionXtinguisher, both meant for lithium-ion battery fires.
He'd like to see the city repurpose abandoned concrete buildings as safe charging stations.
"If they could do stuff like that and keep 'em out of people's houses and away from the children, that'd be really good," Mort said.
FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh testified before the Consumer Product Safety Commission in July, calling for stricter regulations on these batteries. She said they are now the top cause of fatal fires in New York.
