In 2021, a delivery rider was burned after his modified personal mobility device caught fire when he was in a lift in Woodlands. He subsequently passed away from the resulting burns.
After investigations, State Coroner Adam Nakhoda has ruled the delivery rider’s death as a misadventure.
Muhammad Irfan Danish Azhar, aged 20, had bought a modified battery for his already-modified PMD from Carousell before the incident.
Previous investigations showed that Mr Irfan had bought a modified PMD in December 2020, and then changed the battery to one with a higher voltage, The Straits Times (ST) reported.
His best friend said his PMD could ride faster than other approved PMDs.
On the day of the incident on 3 June 2021, Mr Irfan was in the lift in Block 537 Woodlands Drive 16 at around 11.25pm when “flashes of orange light” were seen.
This was followed by an explosion.
A resident heard someone calling for his mother, and they later saw Mr Irfan on fire — various parts of his body were charred.
Neighbours who were alerted to the incident later extinguished the fire in the lift with buckets of water.
Meanwhile, police officers found Mr Irfan lying on a staircase landing, unable to breathe.
Paramedics took him to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital and he died the next day from burn injuries and smoke inhalation.
He had burns on 95% of his body surface area.
Testifying, SCDF senior fire investigator Muhammad Faizal Mazlan said the lithium-ion battery pack may have overheated.
There was no battery management system included that would have prevented overcharging and overheating, likely leading to the fire.
The modifications to the battery pack may have included a system bypass so it can charge faster.
He added that “more current could have been drawn from the battery than expected, possibly leading to overheating”.
The state coroner also advised users to only buy and use UL2272-certified and Land Transport Authority-registered devices instead of those with modifications to prevent future similar incidents.
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Featured image adapted from SCDF on Facebook.
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