At least 4 dead after fire at e-bike shop in New York’s Chinatown

New York, USA, Jun 20 (EFE).- At least four people died early Tuesday morning in Chinatown in New York after a store selling and repairing bikes and electric motorcycles caught fire.

The fire department, which said it was still investigating the causes of the blaze, reported on its Twitter account that responded to the fire at 00:15 local time.

The blaze was located on the ground floor of an apartment building. The dead are presumed to be residents of the building, with no apparent relation to the business.

City councilor Susan Lee linked the fire to the lithium batteries used in e-bikes and other similar modes of transport, and recalled that so far this year 13 people have died in the city in fires caused by this type of batteries.

“Lithium batteries from e-bikes and similar devices have caused 92 fires and injured 64 people,” she wrote on Twitter.

According to police sources quoted by local media Gothamist, the dead are two men and two women, while two other women in critical condition were admitted to hospital. EFE

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