Scooter battery blast moved furniture, cracked glass, left person critical

A person is in a critical condition after a scooter battery exploded in a central city apartment with enough force to crack glass and move furniture.

Crews were called to the Tory Hotel at Century City Apartments on Tory Street at 5.30pm on Saturday, Fire & Emergency incident controller Mike Dombroski said.

There was a fire in an apartment on the first floor of the building, caused by an exposition in a lithium-ion scooter battery which was being charged, he said. One person was taken to hospital with critical injuries.

”Anybody using these batteries for any reason, please take care as they are a fire risk when not stored, charged, used or disposed of correctly,” Dombroski said.

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Tory Hotel at Century City Apartments director Chris Dickinson said his thoughts were with the injured person on Sunday morning.

“It is the last thing in my life I could have imagined,” he said, pointing out there would be “millions” of scooters being charged inside around the world.

The blast left superficial damage around the room including burn marks. Glass on an internal door was cracked and furniture had been moved in the explosion.

However, it was hard to say how much of the movement was from the blast and how much was due to emergency services moving things.

“It has definitely moved heavier furniture and whatever was loose,” he said.

The systems worked well with sprinklers deluging the room and keeping the fire under control. Fire crews were on site within three to four minutes, he said. Damage was isolated to the single apartment.

Everyone in the entire complex – made up of short and long-term stays – was evacuated and allowed back in about 8pm.

Fire and Emergency Services risk and investigations manager Todd O’Donoghue in 2022 said lithium-ion batteries – which are used in devices like smartphones, ebikes, laptops and ecigarettes – had been the cause of a number of fires.

The causes of those fires varied, with some being a faulty product design or mechanical operating failures.

Other causes include carelessness when handling the item, like leaving them close to a heat source.

“Make sure you don’t charge a device under a pillow, don’t leave devices in direct sunlight and only use the battery and charger that is designed for the device – all of these things can cause the device to overheat and cause a fire.

“It’s also important to never dispose of lithium-ion batteries in the rubbish, as if it is defective, it could cause a fire. Recycling is the best option.”