A St. Paul woman took a side job charging electric rental scooters, thinking it could bring in a little extra money and help pay down her student loans.
But now her family is warning about a danger they never saw coming. While eight Lime scooters were charging in their Highland Park garage, a fire broke out.
Morning Report: Get the best stories from St. Paul and its suburbs in your inbox
St. Paul Fire Capt. Joe Blank said Wednesday that he determined it was an accidental fire most likely caused by an overload of the detached garage’s electrical system. “The garage wasn’t able to support the electrical use” of charging multiple scooters, he said.
The fire caused more than $20,000 in damage to the garage and its contents, Blank said.
Christina Wright, whose middle sister was charging the scooters, said she feels fortunate that she and her mother spotted the smoke and were able to get to safety.
“Making a couple quick bucks here and there isn’t worth losing your life,” Wright said. “This could have been a darker, more unfortunate story, if we weren’t home or were sleeping when it happened. It’s just not worth it.”
Silicon Valley-based Lime received an agreement from the city of St. Paul in August and launched its electronic scooters into the city.
People can sign up to be “Juicers” for Lime — they agree to pick up scooters, charge them and get them back onto the streets for people to rent.
“If people are looking into making some money by charging scooters, they need to be cognizant of what they’re plugging into the residence to make sure it can handle the load,” Blank said.
For people who aren’t sure, Blank suggested they contact an electrician to determine how many scooters they can safely charge.
BILLOWING SMOKE AND FLAMES
On Monday afternoon, Wright and her mother were having tea when they looked into the backyard and saw it was pitch black.
Wright initially thought a big storm was coming in, but then she saw a bright light and realized there was a fire. She worried the fire was inside her mother’s home until she realized it was a garage fire.
St. Paul firefighters responded to the fire on Beechwood Avenue, near Fairview Avenue, about 2:15 p.m. and extinguished it.
Wright said her sister has been charging scooters for Lime for a month or so.
When people sign up to be Juicers for Lime, they have to agree to policies, including certifying that electrical outlets they’ll be using meet industry standards and are in good working condition; that they have adequate property and fire insurance; and that charging will happen in a safe manner.
On Monday, Wright said her sister was charging eight scooters in the garage. She said there were two additional scooters there and the fire destroyed all of them. Lime picked up all but one scooter — “it looked like a battery pack exploded on that one,” said Wright, who is wondering if that could have caused the fire.
Blank said he’s still investigating what happened, though he noted the battery could have exploded as a result of the fire.
When Wright’s sister contacted Lime to report what happened, she heard she wouldn’t have to pay for the scooters, Wright said.
But Wright said, “What about the garage and all the things inside? This wasn’t her fault.”
A car that was in the garage was destroyed. Wright said they plan to work with her mother’s insurance company.
A Lime spokeswoman said Wednesday: “We are in contact with the individual and are looking into the matter.”
