E-bike battery ‘exploded like grenade’ and fire ripped through family home – as calls grow for regulation
A man has described the moment a fire ripped through his home after the battery for his son’s e-bike “exploded like a grenade” in the middle of the night.
Andrew Beaton, 59, said his family were “lucky” to escape after the bike, bought online for his son last Christmas, burst into flames while charging under the stairs.
The blaze ripped through his Lancaster home at astonishing speed, momentarily trapping his wife and daughter upstairs and gutting the entire property within minutes.
“It took the fire brigade four or five minutes, that’s all, and the house had gone,” he told Sky News.
“It was that intense. I’ve never seen fire move so quick.”
Andrew Beaton with the remains of some of his family’s belongings
‘They were going off like hand grenades’
Mr Beaton said his family would be dead if his 21-year-old son hadn’t got up for a drink.
The e-bike, which was charging under the stairs, caught fire after he heard several “pop” sounds from the kitchen before shouting up to his dad.
“I jumped up out of bed, ran downstairs, opened the front door and threw the bike outside,” said Mr Beaton.
“As I picked the bike up, all the batteries fell out. They were going off like hand grenades, exploding.”
His wife and daughter only managed to escape from the upstairs landing after he rushed back and forth from the kitchen with buckets of water to quell the flames.
It left Mr Beaton with blisters over his head and body.
The fire, which happened on 25 June, caused £50,000 in damage.
Mr Beaton’s 11-year-old son and daughter have been off school due to the mental impact of the ordeal.
Mr Beaton says the fire caused £50,000 in damage
Call for crackdown on batteries
The incident was just one in a series of recent incidents associated with e-bike and e-scooter batteries, which have prompted warnings from fire brigades.
Just days before, a woman and two children in Cambridge died in a flat fire likely caused by an e-bike on charge.
London Fire Brigade alone has attended 86 fires involving an e-bike this year, and 18 involving an e-scooter.
The government is now facing calls to crack down on the types of batteries used to power the vehicles.
A new report by charity Electrical Safety First has said they should be regulated like fireworks and heavy machinery, which require third-party approval before going on sale.
At the moment, lithium-ion batteries used in e-bikes and e-scooters can go on sale with only the manufacturer’s declaration that they meet safety standards.
That is the case for many electrical goods, but exceptions exist for pyrotechnics, medical kit, and heavy machinery.
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Do e-bike batteries need regulation?
Read more:
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‘Risking lives’
Electrical Safety First chief executive Lesley Rudd said “reckless operators” in the space were “risking lives” and “giving responsible manufacturers a bad name”.
“The huge amount of energy released over time when a battery bursts into flames is unlike other fires,” she warned.
“In a matter of minutes a room can be decimated.
“This unique type of fire requires special measures to tackle the increasing problem.”
These lithium batteries contain much more energy than regular ones – the charity estimates a fully charged e-bike battery releases a similar amount of stored energy as the amount of explosive material inside six hand grenades.
During a controlled laboratory test, a lithium-ion battery fire was shown to spread rapidly, re-ignite, and cause 600C temperatures and sparks.
London Fire Brigade deputy commissioner Dom Ellis told Sky News most e-bike and e-scooter fires they attended involved batteries purchased from online marketplaces.
He said: “We are calling for more research and better regulation for such products, especially e-bike conversion kits from online auction/marketplaces, as well as providing more Information to our communities about safe buying, use and storage of e-bikes and e-scooters.”
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Terrifying moment e-bike battery explodes
Government vows ‘appropriate action’
Electrical Safety First’s Battery Breakdown report also advised ways to make e-bikes and e-scooters resistant to battery damage, including bigger wheels that are less susceptible to potholes.
It called for the banning of universal chargers, and for online marketplaces to better regulate the sale of potentially dangerous e-bikes and e-scooters on their platforms.
The government should also back a public safety campaign, it added.
Sky News understands the issue of fires linked to e-bikes and e-scooters is being worked on across government departments and a research project has been commissioned to examine commonly used batteries.
A government spokesperson said: “The Office for Product and Safety and Standards is working closely with the fire brigade to ensure product safety issues are properly assessed and action is taken to protect consumers.
“If manufacturers don’t comply with product safety regulations, appropriate enforcement action will be taken such as ordering the removal of the product from the market.”
Oleksandr Usyk has become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world after defeating Tyson Fury in boxing’s biggest fight of the century.
The Ukrainian won on a split decision following the match in Saudi Arabia.
Usyk had 115-112 and 114-113 on two cards, while Fury took the other 114-113.
Oleksandr Usyk lands a punch on Tyson Fury. Pic: PA
Fury disputed his loss after the match, saying: “I believe I won that fight. I believe he won a few rounds but I won more of them.
“Make no mistake I won that fight and I’ll be back.”
In response Usyk said he was “ready for a rematch”.
Pic: Action Images via Reuters
Fury came under early pressure, with Usyk taking the centre of the ring with an aggressive offensive from the start.
At one point Fury was pushed against the ropes and started laughing as Usyk applied pressure.
The “Gypsy King” looked relaxed as he moved around the ring in the early rounds and picked his shots.
Pic: PA
Fury lunges at Usyk. Pic: PA
But after Usyk landed a right hook in the ninth round it looked as if Fury was in serious trouble. The Ukrainian followed up by unloading freely but somehow the bookmakers’ favourite stayed on his feet and was saved by the bell.
Last night, Fury weighed in at 262lbs (18st 10lbs) – nearly three stone heavier than Usyk, who clocked in at a career heaviest of 223lbs (15st 13lbs).
Fury refused to look at his opponent during a news conference on Thursday, but did not back down at the weigh-in last night, where the pair almost came to blows before being separated by their entourages.
Usyk arrived into the ring first, dressed as a Cossack warrior.
Fury entered to songs by Barry White and Bonnie Tyler, with the “Gypsy King” spending several minutes dancing on stage before the song changed to Holding Out For A Hero.
Anthony Joshua watched from the ringside, knowing he could meet the winner early next year.
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UK
Brixham: Warning ‘heads are going to roll’ after water parasite outbreak – as ‘nearly every house in one close has someone ill’
Thousands of homes have had their boiling water restrictions lifted after a water tank infected with cryptosporidium was drained and cleaned, South West Water has said.
About 16,000 households in the Brixham area of Devon were told to boil their drinking water following 46 confirmed cases of the disease.
On Saturday afternoon South West Water lifted the boiling restrictions for 14,500 homes after water quality monitoring results found no traces of cryptosporidium in the Alston supply area.
Cryptosporidiosis is caused by a tiny parasite and can lead to vomiting, stomach cramps and watery diarrhoea lasting about two weeks.
More cases are expected to be confirmed due to a delay in developing symptoms – and about 100 more people around Brixham were reporting signs of it on Friday.
South West Water believes the parasite probably entered supplies through a damaged pipe in a field containing animal faeces.
A contaminated water tank at Hillhead reservoir, where cryptosporidium was detected, was drained overnight and “thoroughly cleaned” on Saturday, South West Water said.
One local resident said she knew of only four houses out of 21 in Raddicombe Close, on the outskirts of Brixham, which have not had at least one person fall ill with cryptosporidiosis.
The local MP has warned “heads are going to roll” over the incident.
Tory MP Anthony Mangnall, whose constituency includes Brixham, told LBC: “This is such a serious matter that yes, I think heads are going to roll over this.”
He claimed the supplier had been too slow to issue its safety alert.
16,000 businesses and residents are affected by the boil water notice. Pic: South West Water
Mr Mangnall said: “From starting this week with a denial from South West Water that it was anything to do with them, delaying the fact that the boil water notice came in – meaning thousands of people used the water network – to then issuing it on Wednesday, and there are a lot of people who are very ill.”
He called it an “absolutely disastrous week” and said locals were furious.
South West Water has said it’s “deeply sorry” and that it’s been “working tirelessly” to identify the source of the problem and fix it.
Bottled water stations have been set up in the area.
Read more:
What we know about parasite found in drinking water
Parasite outbreak has ‘destroyed’ business
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey accused the government of not doing enough to hold water companies to account.
He told Sky News the firms were “putting profit over the environment, over public health” after multiple cases of sewage being released into rivers and seas.
“We [Liberal Democrats] wouldn’t wait for fines for pollution,” Sir Ed said.
“There should be a sewage tax on the profits of these water companies so we can get the money now.
“There needs to be much tougher regulation… and we may need to look at restructuring the whole water industry.”
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Kelly Holmes joins anti-sewage protest
It comes as dozens of protests over sewage releases were planned for Saturday.
Surfers Against Sewage is promoting “paddle-out” demonstrations at 30 locations, with Olympian Dame Kelly Holmes among those at the event in Brighton.
The confirmed cases of a waterborne disease caused by a parasite have more than doubled.
There are now 46 confirmed cases of cryptosporidiosis, a diarrhoeal illness, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said – with more than 100 further people reporting similar symptoms in the Brixham area.
Other reported cases of diarrhoea and vomiting in residents and visitors to the south Devon town are also under investigation. Hundreds of locals have also reported feeling unwell over the last two weeks on social media.
MPs and South West Water officials have confirmed the parasite most likely entered water supplies through animal faeces, but an investigation is still ongoing.
What is cryptosporidiosis disease?
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‘Cow faeces’ infected Devon water
The UKHSA first confirmed cases of the disease at around midday on Wednesday, while locals were initially told by South West Water that their tap water was uncontaminated and safe to drink.
But after testing supplies in the Hillhead reservoir, the water company found “small traces” of the parasite cryptosporidium – which causes cryptosporidiosis – and told residents in parts of Brixham and Alston to boil their drinking water on Wednesday.
A total of 16,000 households and businesses in Brixham, Boohay, Kingswear, Roseland and North West Paignton were impacted and offered £15 compensation at first.
Over the next two days, South West Water apologised to those affected and increased the offer to £115. Amid the chaos, one primary school closed its doors on Thursday due to not having safe running drinking water.
16,000 businesses and residents are affected by the boil water notice. Pic: South West Water
‘Very hard questions for water company’
Speaking to Sky News yesterday, South West Water’s chief customer officer Laura Flowerdew confirmed it was likely a broken air valve contaminated by animal faeces that had caused the outbreak.
However, she refused to give a timeframe on how long the incident would be ongoing – leaving thousands of residents facing an uncertain future.
Speaking on Friday at the University of Exeter, Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said there will be “very, very hard questions” for South West Water over the outbreak.
“At the moment I think we probably need to give them the space to conduct their investigation; we know that they have identified the source,” she said.
“The public will want to know how on earth that source happened, what was the chain of events that led to this, because of course we all understand the expectation that we all have when we turn our taps on is that [we get] clean drinking water and we want to be able to trust it.”
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Most cases of cryptosporidiosis pass in two weeks. Symptoms include diarrhoea and vomiting. File pic: Dr_Microbe/iStock
‘Expect to see more cases’
Totnes MP Anthony Mangnall also warned the boil notice could last “at least a further six or seven days” and called for more transparency.
Professor Paul Hunter, a specialist in medical microbiology at the University of East Anglia, told Sky News if the parasite was “a continuous thing” present in water supplies for a prolonged period, then “you’d expect to see more cases” for another two weeks.
It comes as hotel owners in the area told Sky News the outbreak has led to people cancelling their stay, while a head chef said “I can’t wash salad in the sink”.
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‘Destroyed our business’
Stephen Colemansfield, owner of Redlands Guest House in Brixham, told Sky News the outbreak has “destroyed our business at the moment”.
“Our guests have cancelled because of the mixed messages that are being sent out by South West Water.”
Rob, head chef at the Steam Packet Inn in Kingswear near Dartmouth, also said his brother-in-law is one of the 46 confirmed cases of cryptosporidiosis and has been sick for two weeks.
The UKHSA is working with Torbay Council, South West Water, NHS Devon and the Environment Agency on the incident.
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