A worker has made a narrow escape after an e-scooter battery exploded into a wall of flames, but a video of his lucky getaway has ‘cracked up’ social media users.
The man was working on the two-wheeled electric scooter at a tyre shop in Perth, Western .
CCTV footage from the shop showed the staff member kneeling next to the e-scooter when the battery exploded, sending smoke billowing out from the vehicle.
Shocked by the explosion, the man let out a scream before standing up and moving away from the e-scooter.
Just as he moved away, the battery burst into a massive fireball, with flames engulfing a large area of the workshop.
The intense blaze raged on for about a minute before the battery finally burnt out and the man returned with a fire extinguisher and used it to put out the remaining flames.
Social media users praised the man for his quick thinking, with many impressed by his lucky getaway.
However, others found the footage entertaining, as his loose pants exposed his butt crack for all to see.
‘He escaped just in the crack of time,’ one wrote.
‘I’m glad he’s safe, but mooning the internet would be my last straw,’ a second said.
‘Why do bad things always happen on a full moon,’ a third added.
A fourth joked: ‘Y’all be blurring the wackiest stuff, but not homies dignity’.
Lithium-ion battery-related fires, including those caused by low-quality batteries in e-mobility devices, are the fastest-growing type of fire in NSW, with one every four days this year, according to 2024 data.
Lithium-ion batteries, particularly poor-quality ones, are susceptible to uncontrolled thermal runaway events, which occur when the temperature in the battery increases faster than the energy can be dispersed to its surroundings.
The high temperature causes the battery to decompose, creating more heat and ultimately leading to an explosion of flammable gas.
Under new laws introduced in February 2025, products sold in NSW will need to meet a set of internationally accepted product standards and be appropriately tested and certified before entering the market.
New testing, certification, and labelling requirements will be introduced in a staged process.
Sellers of devices like e-bikes or e-scooters in NSW who breach the new standards will face penalties of up to $825,000.