A grief-stricken father has recalled the heartbreaking moment he awoke to find his wife and his two children had been killed in a blaze sparked by an e-bike explosion.
Scott Peden, 30, from Cambridge, lost his partner Gemma, 31, and their children Lilly, eight, and Oliver, four, during a blaze caused by a second-hand e-bike battery he had bought online.
The family’s two dogs also died in the fire, which saw Scott battle a coma for a month, as well as three cases of pneumonia, a cardiac arrest, an infection and prolonged injuries.
When he finally came to, heavily bandaged and blackened with burns with his mother Glenda, 62, was sat at his beside – and delivered the news that would change his life in a ‘matter of minutes’.
The heartbroken man who has been left reeling the loss of his family on a daily basis – especially during the festive season – has issued an urgent warning to others of the dangers posed by second-hand lithium batteries as he attempts to rebuild his life.
‘At Christmas, when people are buying e-bikes as gifts, I am pleading with people not to buy second hand batteries,’ he told The Sun whilst calling for stricter rules on the resale of batteries.
‘We had smoke alarms, but because it was a lithium battery, we didn’t stand a chance. I lost everything in the fire, and I have to start all over again.’
Scott Peden, 30, from Cambridge, lost his partner Gemma, 31, (pictured) during a blaze caused by a second-hand e-bike battery he had bought online
Their children Lilly, eight, and Oliver, four, (pictured) were also killed in the inferno which ripped through their home
Pictured: The aftermath left in their home after the lithium battery he bought for £300 burst into flames
Mr Peden first met his ‘artistic’ and ‘creative’ wife Gemma when they were both teens studying at a college in their hometown of Cambridge.
Describing his ‘very maternal’ wife, he explained that the pair spent around a decade building a life together in their own home which they shared with their children Oliver and Lily as well as their greyhound-boxer cross, Bitsy and Dalmatian, Rollo.
He told of how his wife should’ve celebrated her birthday merely a week ago, whilst his children should be gearing up to turn six and nine over the coming months – but due to the e-bike explosion that reality has been snatched away.
In early 2022, the family were strapped for cash so Scott’s mother purchased an e-bike to help him get to and from work – which he initially thought was ‘brilliant’.
Unfortunately in June 2023, the bike’s battery was stolen as the father purchased dog food for his two pets – and with the prospect of not being able to work without it, he bought a second-hand battery from eBay for half price at £300.
Mr Peden charged the battery downstairs in the hallway of their family home – however on the second night both he and his wife were startled awake by a huge sound likened to a ‘bomb’ at around 1am.
When he went to look what had happened, the father found his staircase engulfed in flames, and was overcome with the realisation that there was no way out of the house for him or his family.
‘The only positive to come from this is me making sure it does not happen to anyone else,’ he said.
‘Before the fire, I had no idea about the dangers of these lithium-ion batteries. I bought my battery online and just assumed it would be safe, I never imagined it could be so dangerous.
In the wake of his grief, the heartbroken father has issued an urgent warning to others about the dangers of second hand lithium batteries (pictured left: Oliver as baby, right Mr Peden and Lily)
The heartbroken father became unconscious after seeing his daughter’s (pictured) body being removed from the home
Their greyhound-boxer cross, Bitsy (pictured with Mr Peden) and Dalmatian Rollo were also killed in the fire
The exterior of their home following the inferno which left Mr Peden in a coma for a month
‘The battery exploded under my stairs, whilst my family was asleep. Flames were coming up the stairs like a flamethrower.’
Screaming out of his window for help, the father leapt from the window and broke his heel whilst he landed, before discovering the source of the flames was the second hand lithium battery.
As the inferno ripped the his home, Mr Peden urged Gemma as well as the children to jump before his late wife tragically responded: ‘I can’t get out’ before silence ensued.
As he collapsed on to his children’s trampoline, a bystander had come to help Mr Peden who was unknowingly on fire.
Their neighbours stayed with the father until emergency services arrived, however the heartbroken father became unconscious after seeing his daughter’s body being removed from the home.
When his mother Glenda arrived at Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford from her holiday, she couldn’t even recognise him due to his injuries.
The fumes from the deadly lithium batteries had also seeped into his lungs and caused sever damage, according to his mother.
Now, the grief-stricken father is forced to face a new life on his own, with not even a photograph to remember his family by because of the devastating blaze.
‘I’ve lost everything from that one night and my heart has been left broken.
Whilst also having to battle battle a coma for a month, Scott also faced three cases of pneumonia , a cardiac arrest, an infection as well as prolonged injuries
Tragedy during the festive season is nothing new for Scott whose sister Stephanie Hansen was killed by her flatmate in December 2022
‘If my story doesn’t show the desperate need for a change in regulation, then I don’t know what will.
‘I’m urging all the political parties to come together to tackle the issue of e-bike fires so that no one has to go through what I did.’
He added: ‘My life has been ruined. I don’t enjoy my life anymore. I’m just living.’
A difficult festive season isn’t an alien concept for Mr Peden, who also struggled during this time of year due to his sister’s death.
Stephanie Hansen, 39, was murdered by her flatmate 30-year-old Sheldon Rodrigues in December 2022.
Her body was found in her west London flat on New Year’s Eve after she was killed when she refused’obsessed’ Rodrigues’s romantic advances.
Rodrigues was sentenced to life imprisonment in March of this year after being found guilty of murder – and will serve a minimum 25 years behind bars.
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