YORK COUNTY, Pa. — An estimated $500,000 worth of damage was caused after a fire that may have started from the lithium battery of an electric bike, officials say.
According to the Airville Volunteer Fire Company Fire Chief, the fire began around 8:30 p.m. on July 8 in a barn in the first block of Eichelberger Road in Lower Chanceford Township.
“It happened fast," said Robert Eichelberger, who owns the property.
Eichelberger and his wife recently returned from an RV trip and were getting ready to plan another.
But on Monday night, those plans changed.
“The flames were higher than the trees," said neighbor Layla Reel. "I couldn’t see what was going on back there but if you go up you can see it’s destroyed even in the back."
Both the Eichelbergers and the Airville fire chief believe it may have been the lithium battery of an electric bike attached to the back of their RV that sparked the fire.
“When I came out of the house, the back of the motor home was on fire," said Eichelberger. "The motor home was fiberglass and it went all the way through the back of the barn real quick.”
“I think there’s a lot to those batteries that can make them explode," the Airville fire chief, Ronnie Miller, told FOX43. "I’ve heard people say overcharging them, the heat can expand them.”
They say it's a bit of speculation, but amid a brutal heat wave, it has Eichelberger thinking twice.
"I don't think I'll ever own another one," he said.
No one was injured in the fire.
Firefighters were able to save the house, which sustained a bit of heat damage.
Eichelberger estimated nearly $500,000 worth of damage was done, as the barn contained an RV, six tractors, and other equipment that was destroyed in the fire.
“We’ll start over…yep, we’ll start over," he said.
