A man in his 40s is in a serious condition after an e-scooter battery exploded at a home in Ipswich early on Tuesday morning.
Firefighters were called to the Nelson Street house at Bundamba at 6.15am, with four crews managing to get the blaze under control a short time later.
The man was transported to the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital with significant smoke inhalation.
A woman in her 30s and two children were taken to Ipswich Hospital for minor smoke inhalation.
Neighbour Timothy Cooper was one of the first people on the scene. He rushed outside after hearing an explosion.
"I looked out the window and saw smoke and people were yelling 'fire'," Mr Cooper said.
"I then proceeded outside with a fire extinguisher and started to hit it with a fire extinguisher and another person who had already grabbed the house hose had dropped it because the flames were getting too big.
"I ended up picking the hose up and kept the fire away as much as I could before the fire brigade turned up."
Mr Cooper said the woman and her two children had been discharged from hospital and were staying with his family.
"She's very stressed out, the mother is. The girls are fine," he said.
"They're a bit worried about where they're going to live and whatnot, but we're trying to help out with that too.
"The house inside is totalled, there's no recovering basically anything.
"Everything's covered in soot, its black, and the whole kitchen, laundry, dining rooms basically gone. It's pretty devastating."
'Significant spike' in e-scooter fires
The fire is the second Brisbane house fire caused by an e-scooter battery exploding in less than a week.
Five people were hospitalised after a fire at Darra on Thursday, including a man in his 40s who suffered severe burns to his back.
Mark Halverson, executive manager for fire safety at the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES), said there had been three incidents of e-scooters catching fire in the last two days alone.
He said one of the leading causes of such incidents was people using the wrong charger.
"In Queensland we have seen a significant spike in fires that have been attributed to lithium ion battery-powered devices over recent months," Mr Halverson said.
"I think this is largely because people who have these types of devices are unaware of the risks and hazards.
"It should be noted that a device that's charged correctly and in line with the manufacturer's recommendations does carry only a minimal risk.
"However, that risk is significantly increased when people are using firstly the incorrect charger so chargers that are recommended by the manufacturer should be used at all times."
Mr Halverson said other common causes of e-scooter fires included not switching off the charger once the device was fully charged, and charging the device in direct sunlight, or where water might be able to get into the battery.
What should you do if your e-scooter catches fire?
Mr Halverson said e-scooters may be at risk of catching fire if the battery was damaged, it easily overheats, or there's a pungent smell.
If a fire does occur, he had these tips:
- If there's sign of overheating, switch off the charger if it's safe to do so;
- If there's sign of fire, remove yourself from the area as soon as possible to avoid the risk of fire and toxic vapours from the battery;
- A small fire can be extinguished with water but the heat from a battery could see it reignite;
- Call triple 0 and request the fire service.
