Video: Electric rickshaw “explodes” outside Buckingham Palace in London

A street outside Buckingham Palace in central London was cordoned off by police this afternoon after an electric rickshaw reportedly exploded outside the royal residence.

Firefighters from the London Fire Brigade (LFB) extinguished the fire, with the burnt remains of the rickshaw visible in pictures posted to the social network X, formerly known as Twitter.

An e-bike just exploded outside Buckingham Palace pic.twitter.com/2mA7VQIT6G

— 왕감자 (@daandydan) March 30, 2024

The user who posted the pictures wrote: “An e-bike just exploded outside Buckingham Palace.”

The photos reveal that rather than an e-bike, the vehicle is actually an electric rickshaw, which have become an increasingly common sight in tourist areas in the capital in recent years, leading to calls for them to be strictly regulated or even banned outright, including from licensed taxi drivers.

The incident happened on Spur Road, close to the entrance to the Palace used by the public visiting what is the official residence of King Charles, although he chooses to live at nearby Clarence House, as he has done for more than two decades.

Another X user posted a brief video to the social network with the caption, “rickshaw’s on fire, taxi drivers justified.”

Rickshaw’s on fire, taxi drivers justified pic.twitter.com/EDRvrNUG7U

— Greg Double (@Dubstep1988) March 30, 2024

While it is not known what caused the explosion and subsequent fire, the incident comes just weeks after LFB warned that fires caused by e-bike and e-scooter batteries were the fastest-growing cause of fires in the city.

According to BBC News, LFB said that there had been a 78 per cent year-on-year increase in such fires during 2023, 155 involving e-bikes and 28 related to e-scooters.

Those fires resulted in three people being killed and a further 60 or so being injured.

Often, such fires are caused by batteries bought online in the aftermarket, and in a report published in January, regulator the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) said that UPP batteries bought via outlets such as Amazon and AliBaba  (OPSS)  presented a “serious risk of fire.”

The OPSS issued Withdrawal Notices to prevent the batteries being supplied to people in the UK to five online marketplaces, as well as 20 direct sellers and the manufacturer, which is based in China.

OPSS chief executive Graham Russell said: “We consider these UPP batteries to be dangerous, and that is why we are taking this action to stop them being supplied.”

LFB welcomed the move, with its assistant commissioner for fire safety, Charlie Pugsley, saying: “The recent enforcement action taken by the Office for Product Safety and Standards is a welcome step towards reducing the risk of customers being exposed to dangerous products.

“The lithium batteries that power these vehicles have failed catastrophically and caused devastating fires.

“We're asking people to check whether they have a UPP battery at home. If you do, stop using it right away, and contact the seller,” he added.