House in Sholinganallur gutted after e-bike battery blast, none hurt

CHENNAI: A family of four had a miraculous escape after an e-bike battery exploded while being charged in their house in the early hours of Wednesday in Sholinganallur.

However, Semmachery police, under whose jurisdiction the accident happened, did not register a case since they considered it a minor accident and the victim did not prefer a complaint.

Police said that the bike belongs to one Eswaran, a cook by profession, who has been living with his wife and two children in a rented house at Parameshwaran for the last three years. On Tuesday night, Eswaran reached home after work and removed the battery from his e-bike to charge it inside the house. Around 1.30 am, he heard the sound of a blast and noticed fire spreading fast from the e-bike battery that was up in flames.

On information, fire tenders from Velachery and Thoraipakkam rushed to the spot and put out the fire. However, most of the household items were destroyed. When contacted, Semmanchery police said that no case was registered since the victim did not prefer a complaint. “Nobody was injured in the accident, so we did not insist on a complaint. If we register a case, we have to seize the bike, which the complainant was not okay with,” said an officer.

Several incidents of e-bikes catching fire, either while being charged or on the run have been reported in the last one month.