FIres & Accidents

Feds Recall 53,000 Scooters/Hoverboards Made by Brooklyn Company Due to Fire Hazard & Deaths of Two Children

By SÍLE MOLONEY
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Jetson Electric Bikes LLC, of Brooklyn, New York, announced the recall of about 53,000 42-volt, Jetson Rogue, self-balancing scooters/hoverboards on March 30, due to a fire hazard and two deaths. According to CPSC and Jetson, the lithium-ion battery packs in the self-balancing scooters/hoverboards can overheat, posing a fire hazard.   In the context of the recall, representatives of CPSC and Jetson, said a 10-year-old girl and her 15-year-old sister died from a fire on April 1, 2022 in Hellertown, Pennsylvania and that the Hellertown Borough Fire Marshal determined that a 42-volt Jetson


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Office & Truck Burn at Webster Parking Lot

By DAVID GREENE
  A fire that destroyed a small outhouse office for a parking garage in Bedford Park as well as a truck parked next to it remains under investigation according to the FDNY, while one car owner alleges 40-mile-per-hour winds brought down a powerline in the area, sparking the fire.   Fire officials were called to 2 J’s Parking Lot, located at 2768 Webster Avenue, between East 198th Street and Oliver Place at 7.52 p.m. on Monday, March 13, for a reported “shed / trailer fire” in the back of the lot. The “all-hands” fire brought 12 fire units, comprising 60 firefighters


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Feds Recall Chinese-Manufactured Lithium-Ion Batteries as Mayor Devises New Plan to Curb E-Bike Fires

By SÍLE MOLONEY & DAVID GREENE
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled 7,250 units of Chinese-manufactured RELiON InSight Series® lithium batteries, due to “thermal burn and fire hazards,” the commission announced on March 2. Meanwhile, following a number of Bronx and New York City fires caused by lithium-ion batteries, New York City Mayor Eric Adams joined other elected officials on Monday to announce the signing into law of the latest package of City fire legislation regulating the sale of lithium-ion batteries, as well as a new action plan targeted at education around the use of such batteries and the prevention of future fires caused by


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Torres Introduces New Federal Safety Laws and Feliz New City Laws on Litihum-Ion Batteries and E-Bikes

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Congressman Ritchie Torres (NY-15) joined City fire officials and local elected leaders in Fordham Heights on Tuesday, March 7, to announce new federal legislation mandating consumer product safety standards for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. The announcement by the congressman, who represents a large swath of The Bronx, including Norwood, Fordham, and much of the northwest of the borough, comes on the heels of a 5-alarm supermarket and food plaza fire at 2096 Grand Concourse in Fordham Heights, caused by the explosion of lithium-ion batteries powering an e-bike on Sunday morning, March 5.

Jose Gonzalez Found Guilty of Killing EMT Yadira Arroyo

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Fordham Heights resident, Jose Gonzalez, was found guilty by a jury on Wednesday, March 8, of the murder of FDNY Emergency Medical Technician, Yadira Arroyo, who he ran over with her ambulance nearly six years ago, according to the Office of the Bronx District Attorney. Darcel Clark, Bronx district attorney, announced the news the same day. As reported, after years of waiting, the family of the victim received news that Gonzalez was finally fit to stand trial on Sept. 21, 2022.   In the context of the conviction announcement, Clark said, “Jose Gonzalez was convicted today of first-degree murder in


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UPDATE Fordham Heights: 7 Injured, 2 Seriously, following Supermarket Fire Caused by E-bike

By SÍLE MOLONEY
A 5-alarm supermarket fire which broke out on Sunday morning, March 5, in the Fordham Heights section of The Bronx has injured a total of seven people, two of whom incurred serious injuries.   Fire officials said the alarm regarding the blaze, described by the FDNY as a “hazmat incident,” meaning it related to hazardous material, and which broke out at a supermarket located at 2096 Grand Concourse in the vicinity of East 181st Street, was raised at at 10.41 a.m. on Sunday morning. According to the FDNY, the fire began in the rear of a one-story building (100 ft


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Fordham Manor: Fire at 2728 Morris Avenue Results in 5 Minor Injuries

By SÍLE MOLONEY & DAVID GREENE
FDNY officials said a fire which broke out at 2728 Morris Avenue, a five-story, residential building, on Wednesday resulted in the hospitalization of five people with minor injuries.   When contacted by Norwood News about the incident, a fire department official said the call was received by FDNY at 8.33 a.m. on Wednesday, March 1, and the fire was brought under control at 10.10 a.m.  “Main body of fire has been extinguished and incident placed under control,” FDNY officials added. REGISTER TODAY for the 1st Annual @FDNYFoundation Climb to SUMMIT brought to you by @SLGreen taking place at One Vanderbilt


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UPDATE University Heights: Fire in Residential Building Under Control at 103 West 183rd Street

By SÍLE MOLONEY
FDNY officials said firefighters have extinguished a fire which broke out in a multiple dwelling in the University Heights section of the Bronx on Friday evening, Feb. 24. The department officials said all hands were called at 6.31 p.m. to respond to the blaze which broke out on the 5th floor of a residential building located at 103 West 183rd Street in Apartment 52. REGISTER TODAY for the 1st Annual @FDNYFoundation Climb to SUMMIT brought to you by @SLGreen taking place at One Vanderbilt in New York City on Sunday, April 23, 2023. Funds raised will help purchase stair climbers


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Highbridge: Man Charged following Fatal Three-Vehicle Collision & Fire on Cross Bronx Expressway

By SÍLE MOLONEY
A three-vehicle fire has been reported on the Cross Bronx Expressway at around 12.30 on Nov. 29, 2022. Video courtesy of the Citizens’ App. Police said a 43-year-old man has been arrested and charged following a fatal, three-vehicle, road collision and fire that occurred in November 2022 on the Cross Bronx Expressway in the Highbridge section of The Bronx.   As reported, the New York State Alert System announced there was a vehicle fire on the southbound lane of the Cross Bronx Expressway, just past the Major Deegan Expressway on Tuesday morning, Nov. 29, 2022. Police later said officers had


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