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A father says he lost his home in ‘only 10 minutes’ after his son’s converted second-hand e-bike battery exploded.
Don Hettjarachi, 49, had returned from a night shift as a bus driver when he heard the smoke alarm blare at about 10am on September 20.
Both stories of his terraced house in New Malden, a suburb of south-west London, were engulfed by flames and clogged with smoke.
By 11.52am, 25 firefighters had the blaze on Muybridge Way under control. But the ground and first floor were gutted, Don told Metro.
The conservatory was ‘melted’, the downstairs bathroom, living room and kitchen destroyed, the upstairs three bedrooms scorched and their belongings damaged.
The cause was the lithium battery of Don’s son’s converted e-bike he bought from a friend failing. It had been charging for five hours in the conservatory.
Don Hettjarachi and his family had only recently moved into their home when the fire broke out (Picture: Electrical Safety First)
‘I heard the fire alarm going off and thought it was the neighbour’s, so I looked out of the bedroom window and saw my neighbours running around,’ Don said.
‘I came downstairs – that’s when I realised it was my fire alarm. I looked through the living room and it was covered in black smoke.
‘My wife and eldest son ran out and were looking for our little cat – she had escaped and was hiding under one of the cars.
‘Luckily no one was hurt, that’s the main thing. Our neighbours had already phoned the fire brigade.
‘It took only 10 minutes to take my whole house, that lithium battery.’
The council provided the family with emergency accommodation as their home was ‘uninhabitable’ that same night. Following a check-up from a doctor, Don and his wife took a month off work due to the stress.
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An investigation found a second-hand converted e-bike left to charge for five hours was the cause of the fire (Picture: Electrical Safety First)
The family are now raising money to cover the costs (Picture: Electrical Safety First)
Adding to his list of woes, Don’s home insurance expired over the summer. His father-in-law fell ill and between arranging doctors for him in Sri Lanka, ‘I didn’t even think about renewing my policy,’ he said.
The family moved back into their partly rebuilt home last week. But images of flames and smoke are hard to forget.
‘When I see the signs of this fire, it’s very tough,’ Don says. ‘We are getting there slowly but my wife is still in shock. My son feels guilty about it, I feel so sorry for him.’
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Source:: Metro
