A FIRE at a Byron Bay bike shop is believed to have been sparked while staff were testing a faulty battery from a cheap online brand that a customer had brought in.<\/p>\n
When the battery ignited, the flames quickly escalated, triggering a domino effect as staff rushed to retrieve a fire blanket to contain the blaze.<\/p>\n
The Freedom Machine store on Byron Street was completely gutted, though staff and neighbouring businesses were unharmed.<\/p>\n
In an Instagram post, the store thanked NSW Fire and Rescue and NSW Police for their swift response, as well as those who helped during the incident. However, it also revealed that a secondary storage area had been looted shortly afterwards.<\/p>\n
“Though these are incredibly tough times, we are so incredibly thankful to the Byron Bay community and our staff for their ongoing support lending a hand where they can,” it said. “We have friends that we didn’t even know we had.”<\/p>\n
The business says it plans to reopen in a new location soon. In the meantime, it is encouraging customers who are considering purchasing an e-bike to support the company through its other stores in Murwillumbah and Randwick in Sydney.<\/p>\n
“There’s only one way forward and that’s upward as we rebuild stronger and better than before,” the post said.<\/p>\n
The incident comes amid growing concerns about e-bike safety across the Northern Rivers region.<\/p>\n
Over the past six months, 208 legal actions have been initiated for e-bike and bicycle-related offences in the Tweed Byron Police District.<\/p>\n
Byron Bay, Tweed Heads and the Tweed Coast remain the primary hotspots for detected offences, with helmet non-compliance the most common issue, accounting for more than half of all cases.<\/p>\n
Local police continue to attend schools and community events, providing education on the safe use of e-bikes and bicycles.<\/p>\n
In a separate incident, a home in Miami on the Gold Coast was destroyed by fire on Good Friday while the family was away. Authorities believe an e-bike battery ignited in the carport before the fire spread throughout the property.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A FIRE at a Byron Bay bike shop is believed to have been sparked while staff were testing a faulty battery from a cheap online brand that a customer had brought in. When the battery ignited, the flames quickly escalated, triggering a domino effect as staff rushed to retrieve a fire blanket to contain the […]<\/p>\n