# Brooklyn fire erupted after NYC partner in e-bike battery-swapping program didn’t follow FDNY rules

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/brooklyn-fire-erupted-after-nyc-partner-in-e-bike-battery-swapping-program-didnt-follow-fdny-rules/
- Published: 2026-11-14T18:25:08+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-14T19:23:57+00:00
- Original publisher: New York Post (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://nypost.com/2026/11/14/us-news/brooklyn-fire-erupted-after-nyc-partner-in-e-bike-battery-swapping-program-didnt-follow-fdny-rules/
- Topics: Business, Companies, World

## Key points

- FDNY found PopWheels breached safety rules at its Brooklyn storage site.
- The fire destroyed 433 batteries and caused about $500,000 in damage.
- The investigation could not determine whether the breach caused the blaze.

## Summary

A Brooklyn e-bike battery company working with New York City’s transport and fire departments violated safety rules at a storage site where a fire destroyed hundreds of batteries. The FDNY said PopWheels charged and stored battery packs in unapproved cabinets, though investigators could not establish whether that breach caused the blaze.

The 15 August fire at the Fort Greene site caused about $500,000 in damage and required a further $150,000 in hazardous-materials clean-up; no one was hurt. PopWheels says no batteries were being charged or discharged when the fire began and describes its safety record as strong, while disputing some recent FDNY citations. The company is one of three approved operators of outdoor battery-swapping kiosks, amid a reported 68% rise in lithium-ion battery fires this year and a City Council emergency hearing scheduled for 20 November.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.