An e-bike was the cause of a major fire explosion on a TTC subway car over the weekend.
According to reports, the vehicle’s battery, made of lithium-ion, ignited on Sunday causing heavy smoke and a fiery blaze.
According to the City of Toronto, these sorts of batteries need to be properly handled because in rare instances, they can cause a fire or an explosion.
CityNews Toronto spoke with a commuter who said he was on the westbound TTC train when he allegedly heard another passenger’s e-bikes making a flaring sound before smoke began to escape.
Seconds later, fire shot out. The commuter described the smell as a bonfire with a plastic bag tossed in.
“People evacuated pretty quickly. Some people fell on the floor and hurt their faces, but I don’t think they had serious injuries,” he shared with the news outlet.
He also noted that it could have been worse if they were inside the tunnel and not stopped at a station with the doors wide open.
Additionally, the bike owner was reportedly rushed to the hospital with second-degree burns. A TTC operator was also treated for smoke inhalation.
Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg confirmed it was a “battery powered device” that exploded.
“The fire resulted from the failure of a lithium-ion battery pack that provided the power source to an e-bike,” Pegg told reporters on Tuesday.
“This is common when lithium-ion batteries fail as they contain a significant amount of energy.”
In October, a TTC commuter made headlines for boarding the subway on what looked like a motorized vehicle, which had many people discussing which modes of transport should be permitted on the transit system.
At the time, TTC spokesperson Stuart Green told Now Toronto the bike in the video was likely an “elaborate e-bike.”
“Motor-assisted devices, unless for mobility purposes, are not permitted on TTC vehicles or in stations. Customers should alert any member of TTC staff or file a report on the SafeTTC app to report this. This would be subject to a $235 fine under TTC bylaw 1,” Green said.
Now Toronto reached out to the TTC regarding this incident and it shared that e-bikes are permitted on transit as long as it’s not during rush hour.
“The safety of our customers and employees is our number one priority. We are examining similar incidents of e-bike fires that have occurred on transit systems in North America and Europe. We are also consulting with Toronto Fire Services to better understand what caused this e-bike to ignite, and to understand the risks associated with e-bike batteries. Once we have a clear understanding of what happened on Sunday we can best determine next steps,” it said in an email statement.
