ANN/THE STRAITS TIMES – One person was taken to hospital after a fire caused by an e-bike broke out on a pavement at Punggol Place in Singapore on Saturday night.
When The Straits Times (ST) arrived at about 10pm, an ambulance and a Red Rhino were at the scene. A charred e-bike was also seen on the pavement.
In response to queries from ST, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the fire at 9.35pm.
The fire involved a power-assisted bicycle (PAB) on a pavement and was put out with a fire extinguisher.
Preliminary investigations found that the fire had originated from the PAB, said the SCDF, adding that one person was taken to Sengkang General Hospital. SCDF reminded users of PABs and personal mobility devices (PMDs) not to charge the devices’ batteries for an extended period. It also reminded users not to buy or use non-original batteries.
Fires involving active mobility devices, including PMDs and e-bikes, saw a 33.3-per-cent drop from 63 cases in 2021 to 42 in 2022.
The figures were released in February as part of SCDF’s annual statistics report for 2022. At that time, SCDF attributed the decrease to the implementation of regulatory measures.
However, the SCDF also said that such fires continue to be a concern for the authorities as the devices involved are often used by those with walking difficulties.
