Last week, Mayor Bibb’s Administration went to court to shut down a dumping ground of thousands of electric scooters with dangerous lithium-ion batteries located in a warehouse building. Without a permit or license, thousands of these derelict batteries and junk scooters were transported to Cleveland from across the country.
Just two months ago, lithium-ion batteries sparked a major fire that killed four people and seriously injured two others after a lithium-ion battery from a first-floor e-bike shop in New York. Fire officials say the blaze quickly spread to apartments above the shop. The problem has only gotten worse. Rechargeable batteries, including lithium-ion batteries, have caused 669 incidents just in New York and San Francisco. Since 2019 , New York city recorded 326 injuries related fires caused by rechargeable batteries.
Lithium-ion batteries – which are common in scooters – pose a very serious threat to create fires like the fire that killed four people in New York City. Even merely a handful of scooters can pose a serious fire danger.
When Mayor Bibb and Fire Chief Luke learned that thousands of scooters and batteries – many from out of town -- were in a Cleveland warehouse, they stepped in. Working with the Law Department, the Bibb Administration filed a lawsuit seeking a Temporary Restraining Order.
“My administration is committed to putting people first — protecting Cleveland residents and holding out-of-state property owners and companies accountable,” said Mayor Bibb. “I’m proud of the collaboration our Law department has had with the Department of Public Health and the Department of Building and Housing in taking action against offenders. We are starting to see tangible results – a sign of real progress toward a better Cleveland.”
In its Complaint, the City stated that; On information and belief, Skinny Labs, which does business as "Spin" renting electric scooters to the public, does not rent out the scooters stored at 4200 Lakeside Cleveland; the scooters are non-functional and have been brought to Cleveland from locations across the United States; nor does Skinny Labs cause the scooters to be repaired, as repair is not cost effective. Skinny Labs is only using 4200 Lakeside Avenue as a dumping ground for the nonfunctioning scooters.
After confronting the Defendant, the Administration won an agreement that: 1) the Defendant will immediately set up a Fire Watch until all batteries and scooters are removed; 2) All batteries and scooters will be removed within 30 days; and 3) the Defendant will document that the scooters and batteries have not been moved to a new location in Cleveland. The Defendant also indicated that they will seek to recycle as many batteries as possible.
Special credit goes to Fire Marshal Telban, Lieutenant Woidke, and Code Enforcement Chief Roberts for moving quickly to prevent a possible fire emergency.
These steps are just the latest in the Bibb Administration’s commitment to protecting Cleveland residents and holding out-of-state companies accountable. To date, the Law Department has worked closely with the Department of Public Health and the Department of Building and Housing to sue out-of-landlords for code violations, seek receivership actions, file hundreds of Affidavits of Fact regarding properties that are the subject of lead hazard control orders, putting the public and potential buyers on notice that the property contains lead hazards. This approach is being used for the first time in Cleveland history, and hire a full-time criminal prosecutor focusing on lead prosecutions.
