A devastating Bronx apartment fire believed to have been caused by an e-bike battery has now claimed the lives of four members of the same family, with three victims dying days after the blaze, officials said.
The fire broke out at about 12:50 a.m. Wednesday in the kitchen of an 11th-floor apartment at NYCHA’s Patterson Houses. According to the FDNY, the burning e-bike blocked the apartment’s only exit and trapped residents inside.
A 10-year-old boy, identified in reports as Zion Maine, was the first victim to die.
Four relatives were taken to the hospital in critical condition. On Friday, officials confirmed that three of them — two boys, ages 15 and 16, and a 33-year-old woman — had succumbed to their injuries.
Family members told the Daily News that Zion and the two teenage boys were half-brothers.
The eldest teenager was identified as Jamaree Adam, while the woman who died was his mother, Syida Adam, according to the newspaper.
Syida was the girlfriend of Zion’s 37-year-old father, Courtney, who remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Fire officials said the family’s apartment became a deadly trap after the e-bike ignited near the entrance.
“An e-bike was placed in the pathway of the exit door,” FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore told reporters Wednesday morning.
“It was positioned in the kitchen in a way that made it impossible for the residents to get out safely.”
FDNY Chief of Department John Esposito said firefighters were forced to break into the apartment because the burning bike and battery were blocking the front door.
“When that door opened, it opened into a heavy fire,” Esposito said.
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“The e-bike and the kitchen were immediately inside that doorway.”
“There was a victim behind the door who firefighters quickly pulled out and transported to the hospital.”
Zion was also taken to Jacobi Medical Center, but doctors were unable to save him, authorities said.
“He loved basketball,” a neighbor close to the family said of the boy.
“He was young, full of life, funny and incredibly energetic. Sometimes he would surprise you with the things he said,” the neighbor told The Post.
The boy was especially fond of the flavored ice popsicles his mother gave him “all week, every week,” the neighbor said.
Neighbor Cynthia Ayala, 32, described Zion as quiet and said he never went “around looking for no trouble.”
“He stayed out of people’s way,” she said. “He didn’t get into trouble. It’s not like he was a bad [kid].”
Courtney reportedly worked at a car wash and earned a modest income to support the family.
Another neighbor, who identified himself as Tony, told The Post that Zion’s father “worked at the car wash, making a little bit of money for his family.”
“We all have cookouts out here, and we all spend time together,” he said. “The 11th floor is a tight-knit floor. We’re like family.”
