1 man dead, 1 injured after house fire in Bronx; E-scooter battery considered as the cause

BELMONT, Bronx (WABC) — One man died and another was hospitalized after a house fire in the Belmont section of the Bronx.

A resident was hanging out of his window when firefighters arrived at the Beaumont Avenue apartment building just after 11:50 p.m. Thursday.

As firefighters battled the fire, thick black smoke billowed from the third-floor apartment.

A 34-year-old man was dragged from the apartment but died at St. Barnabas Hospital.

A 56-year-old resident was overcome by smoke and taken to Jacobi Hospital in stable condition.

Ten residents of the building, including children, were left homeless.

“I went back to my apartment, looked out the window and heard someone coughing and calling for someone and I could see the smoke,” one resident said. “I went outside to the street and he was hanging out the window. He couldn’t breathe, the smoke was consuming him. So I held him at the window. He told me the fire was at the door, I couldn’t open the door. So I ran back into the house and knocked on everyone’s windows to let them know.

Firefighters isolated a lithium-ion battery from an e-bike and are investigating its possible involvement in the fire.

The property manager said one of the apartment’s residents used an e-scooter to make deliveries.

Property manager Ernesto said he believes the resident was charging the lithium-ion battery in his home.

He said he told the resident to stop leaving the scooter in the hallway because there was a fire risk.

The resident agreed to store the scooter outside but continued to charge the battery at home.

There have been 222 battery-related fires this year, with 88 injuries and at least four deaths, compared to 224 battery-related fires with 122 injuries and 14 deaths last year.

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