An e-bike that contained a lithium-ion battery destroyed a Bronx supermarket Sunday morning, officials said.
A five-alarm fire broke out at the Concourse Food Plaza in Fordham Heights at approximately 10:40 a.m., according to the FDNY.
The e-bike was in the back of the supermarket, but it is unclear who owned the bike, officials said.
It was unclear whether the battery was charging at the time of the blaze.
FDNY Chief of Department John J. Hodgens said firefighters were at the scene in under four minutes to tend to the fire.
“The amount of fire that was produced by a single battery in just under five minutes was, we were unable to get ahead of it, and spread quickly into the void spaces of the building and took off from there,” he said at a press conference Sunday afternoon.
He said they stopped the fire from spreading to the furniture store nearby, but the fire already spread to the laundromat.
“It’s really something we’ve never seen before, as far as a small fire turning into something like this in a matter of a few minutes,” Hodgens said.
Officials say there were no fatalities, but seven people were hurt — five firefighters have minor injuries, while one civilian and one EMS worker have serious injuries.
FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh said there was extreme damage to the supermarket.
“The roof is caved in. There’s nothing left and it’s all because of this single bike,” she said at the press conference. She emphasized to the public how much damage an e-bike that might not be compliant, certified or might be using an illegal battery can cause.
“This bike could be in your home and if it could do this amount of damage to a store of this size, just think of the danger it could confront to yourself, to your family, to your building,” Kavanagh said.
Per FDNY Fire Marshals, the cause of today’s 5-alarm fire at 2096 Grand Concourse in the Bronx was a lithium-ion battery which powered a scooter. pic.twitter.com/HTifRojiJo
— FDNY (@FDNY) March 5, 2023
Mayor Eric Adams said the video of the fire will have a “chilling impact.”
“When you saw how fast this fire started and spreaded, it just really gives you a point of pause to see really what the commissioner has been saying for some time now,” he said at the press conference.
The fire comes days after the City Council passed a series of bills intended to regulate lithium-ion batteries, which have been connected to an increasing number of fires across the five boroughs.
Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson said the borough has seen too many residential and commercial fires.
“We’ve been here far too often,” she said.
The scene remains under investigation, officials said.