PMD Fires Hit Record High This Year With 73 Fires In 9 Months

With the Personal Mobility Device (PMD) ban put into place, it’s pretty surprising that PMD fires are still raging.

In fact, just one day after the PMD ban was announced, a PMD burst into flames while charging in the living room of a house.

Needless to say, it charred the house beyond recognition.

We never learn, do we?

And hey, statistics don’t lie.

PMD Fires Hit Record High This Year With 73 Fires In 9 Months

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) took to Facebook to reveal some very worrying statistics with regards to PMD-related fires.

Firstly, there were a total of 73 PMD-related fires in the first nine months of 2019. You might think that that is a small number, but just imagine the damage that the fires have caused.

The number of fires that happened in the first nine months of 2019 was almost equal to the 74 fires that involved these devices for the whole of last year.

In fact, we see PMD-related fires happening so often as of late that we might just scroll past when we see an article about it. Too common already.

Take this for example: On 8 October, a man and an infant were brought to the hospital when a PMD caught fire in a Bukit Batok flat.

On 5 December, a PMD that was being charged at a Clementi HDB corridor caused a fire, and residents had to be evacuated. At least this guy is smart not to charge that explosive thing in his own house.

A Lot More Fires Compared To 2017

Here’s more proof that the situation is only getting worse. In 2017, there were just 49 PMD-related fires, up from 14 in 2016 and one in 2015. That’s still relatively lower than the 73 fires that were recorded in the first nine months of this year.

It’s not only the houses that are being destroyed due to these fires, but lives are too. In total, 71 people were victims of PMD-related fires, and at least one person has died in the hospital.

So what has the gahmen done? Many things.

For instance, from 1 April 2020, every single PMD has to go through mandatory inspection. Further, all PMDs have to be certified safe by 1 July 2020.

Those manufacturing PMDs will have to comply with the UL2272 and will also go through “rigorous tests at accredited testing centres before being certified”.

They’re not taking any chances.

Disposing Non-UL2272

If you’re the owner of a PMD, I hope that you have grasped the severity of the situation.

And if you happen to own a non-UL2272 standard PMD, please dispose of them as soon as possible.

From now till March 2020, you can dispose of the devices at designated disposal points set up by e-waste recyclers who have been appointed by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).

And if you already own a UL2272 PMD, here are some safety tips:

• Do not leave your devices charging for a long period of time unattended
• Do not tamper, modify or repair your devices or batteries