'Faulty electric bike' likely to have caused Leicester house fire which left two in hospital

A faulty electric bike battery is likely to have caused a house fire which left two people critically injured in Leicester.

Emergency services were called to the blaze in Evington Drive at 9.47am on Friday (4 August).

Two men were rescued by Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service and taken to hospital. They remain in a critical condition.

A spokesperson for the force said the blaze was believed to have started accidentally, with "the most probable cause" being "an electrical fault within the battery unit of an electric bicycle.”

They said: "the fire was extinguished, damping down took place and reinspection was carried out with a Thermal Imaging Camera which identified no further hotspots.

"A cordon at the property and the nearby area was in place over the weekend as Fire Investigators and Police Forensic Investigators looked to establish the cause of the fire.

"It is believed the fire started accidentally and the most probable cause was an electrical fault within the battery unit of an electric bicycle."

They also added the living room of the house was severely damaged by fire, with "heavy smoke damage" to the rest of the ground floor.

The other floors were also affected by smoke damage.

Residents in the area said they heard a woman screaming for help to rescue the men inside the house.

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