Massive Blaze Near Bed-Stuy Caused By 50 E-Bike Batteries: FDNY

BED-STUY, BROOKLYN — A massive blaze on the border of Bed-Stuy and Bushwick that left a woman in critical condition was cause by about 50 batteries inside a makeshift e-bike repair shop a tenant operated in the three-story building, fire officials said after the fire on Tuesday.

"It only takes one to fail," said Chief Fire Marshal Daniel Flynn, "so having 50 inside the same location is tremendously dangerous."

As over 130 firefighters fought the flames during the early morning hours on Tuesday, smoke eaters pulled out two injured residents, one of whom remains in critical condition, according to the FDNY.

Officials said in these kinds of fires, people often don't have time to get to safety.

"When these fires occur, they occur so violently that it traps the occupants, so they are unable to get out," Flynn said.

Lithium batteries, especially ones that are aftermarket or unauthorized, can cause massive, violent flames, said FDNY Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh.

Tuesday's fire was so intense and grew at such a violent pace that the building's functioning sprinkler system had no effect, and quickly trapped two residents, Kavanagh said.

Flynn said that e-bike battery fires are growing — last year the city saw 220 fires, with 6 fatalities. This year, he said, the department has already battled 24 lithium fires, with one person dying.

"Seems like the number is doubling year by year," Flynn said.

And many of those, Flynn added, are from people trying to repair batteries when they break rather than replacing them, a scourge he said the department finds at fires all across the city.

Kavanagh and Flynn noted several ongoing efforts to help restrict the sale of batteries that don't meet industry safety standards, as well as city legislation that would restrict the storage and charging of batteries in residential buildings.

"This is a critical safety issue for New Yorkers and for our members," Kavanagh said. "We need people to treat these as carefully as they need to because these are very dangerous devices."