Lithium-ion battery sparks deadly fire in Brooklyn, FDNY says - CBS New York

By Renee Anderson

Updated on: October 16, 2024 / 12:06 PM EDT / CBS New York

NEW YORK -- A lithium-ion battery sparked a deadly fire early Wednesday morning in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, the FDNY says.

A 69-year-old man was killed in the blaze, and two other people were treated for minor injuries.

The flames broke out on the second floor of an apartment building on Brighton Beach Avenue and Brightwater Court. Officials said two children were inside the apartment, but they were able to escape.

"The occupants were home at the time of the fire, they heard the battery fail, it made a noise. They attempted to extinguish that fire, clearly were unable to extinguish the fire," one fire official said on the scene. "The device was blocking the egress of the person that succumbed to from injuries."

Fire officials added the lithium-ion battery was purchased online and did not appear to be a certified device. They also stressed the importance of calling 911 right away and making sure smoke detectors are in working order.

"Thankfully, our firefighters were quickly able to stretch hose lines and extinguish the fire before it spread to additional apartments throughout," said another fire official. "I would say that we were kind of lucky that we were able to do that, as quickly as we did, considering the heavy fire conditions."

So far this year, four people have been killed in fires caused by these batteries, compared to 14 at this time last year.

Stick with CBS News New York for the latest updates on this developing story.

Renee Anderson is a digital producer at CBS New York, where she covers breaking news and other local stories. Before joining the team in 2016, Renee worked at WMUR-TV.

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