Hero firefighter rescues family from 'ferocious' e-bike fire during first week in job

"Naveen Narayanasankar, who was inside the property, described how he heard a blast come from downstairs and opened the door to find lots of smoke. The people downstairs were telling us there was a fire, he explained. Everyone in the flat woke up but there was so much smoke, we couldn't see or breathe properly. We called the fire brigade and went to the window for help."

"The firefighter did not hesitate to rescue those trapped in the building and quickly climbed a 13.5 metre ladder to help guide a child out of the window. I could see people at the second-floor window, with smoke pouring out, waving their arms, Mr Johnson explained. The officer in charge said someone needed to go up the ladder immediately and I did not hesitate. The 30-year-old immediately went back up to rescue two further children before helping four adults down the ladder."

"The hallway of the property was completely destroyed in the fire Firefighters at the scene described facing conditions they had never faced before due to the incredibly hot blaze. Crews from Norbury Fire Station had arrived just two minutes after the first 999 call and immediately set about tackling the dangerous fire. Lithium-ion battery fires can be ferocious, producing jets of flame and can even become hot enough to melt through metal. The fires can also produce toxic vapour clouds."

An e-bike fire broke out in a communal ground-floor hallway in Norbury, quickly filling flats upstairs with smoke and trapping a family of five plus neighbours. Residents woke to smoke after a blast and called the fire brigade while seeking rescue at windows. Crews from Norbury Fire Station arrived two minutes after the first 999 call. Firefighter Zekel Johnson climbed a 13.5-metre ladder to guide a child from a second-floor window, returned to rescue two more children, and helped four adults down. He later wore breathing apparatus and entered the home to help extinguish the lithium-ion battery blaze. Firefighters described exceptionally hot, ferocious conditions capable of melting metal and producing toxic vapours.

Read at www.standard.co.uk