Watch moment bin lorry goes up in flames after e-bike battery explodes
This comes amid warnings that e-bikes are 'London's fastest-growing fire trend'.
Watch the moment flames leap out of a bin lorry after an e-bike battery explodes.
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The blaze nearly envelopes the lorry in north Brixton earlier this week.
Footage shows the vehicle picking up rubbish from a side-street in south London.
Black smoke billows out of the compactor as it picks up rubbish from a huge heap.
A blaze erupts out of the lorry as the bin men rush to extinguish the flames. Two of the men then seemingly use fire extinguishers on the rising flames before moving away.
This comes amid warnings from the London Fire Brigade that e-bikes and e-scooters are 'London's fastest-growing fire trend'.
"Get out of the cab!" witness Kate Burt overheard.
"The guys on the truck, who work for Serco, told me they believed a discarded bike type battery was the most likely cause for the explosion," the author of This is Rubbish said.
"They said a similar fire had started in another truck only last Friday."
Three people have died in fires caused by e-bike battery failures in London since 2023 and more than 100 people have been hurt, the brigade said.
Read More: Two dogs die and two homes destroyed in separate e-bike and e-scooter blazes just hours apart
Read More: E-bikes to be banned from Tube, Elizabeth line and London Overground due to fire risk
There were 143 e-bike fires in London in 2023, 142 last year and 14 in January 2025, according to the Evening Standard.
Meanwhile, e-bikes were banned from the Tube, the Elizabeth line and the DLR (Docklands Light Railway) from March 31.
Passengers found with a non-foldable e-bike on TfL services will be told to leave and could be fined up to ÂŁ1,000.
🚨 Our reps are meeting with @TfL today, urging them to ban flammable electric bikes from the network. Safety must come first to protect passengers and transport workers. https://t.co/EVZY7jT8LX
— TSSA (@TSSAunion) March 11, 2025
TfL said in a statement: "While the majority of e-bikes are safe, there have been a small number of incidents where non-foldable e-bikes have caught fire on the transport system in London.
"To ensure the safety of the network for customers and staff, customers in possession of non-foldable e-bikes will not be permitted to travel on most TfL services, including on the Tube, Overground, Elizabeth line and DLR.
"The ban includes all non-folding e-bikes, including standard cycles that have been converted to e-bikes using conversion kits."