Portland man warns of e-bike dangers after fire damages home, kills 2 cats

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - Boarded-up windows and fire damage cover the Humphreys’ home. They say 10 years of memories that filled this house and their two beloved cats were gone in the matter of minutes.

“You are my sunshine. Melted memories of Tuesday,” said resident Mathew Humphrey.

He walked through his home, assessing the damage after a fire tore through his Northeast Portland house early Tuesday morning. The fire destroyed everything in his home.

“The ceiling had to be cut away here as well as they were fighting the fire as it got to the ceiling,” explained Humphrey.

The husband and father of three said he was woken up by his wife after she smelled smoke.

“I ran downstairs, went to my garage, opened the door, completely full of smoke. And I could see at my bench where the battery was, and my chair that everything was on fire,” said Humphrey.

Portland Fire & Rescue said preliminary indications suggest lithium-ion batteries were the cause of the fire. Humphrey said he was helping a friend with their electric bike the night before. He checked the e-bike and made sure all was good before going to bed. But about six hours later, flames and smoke engulfed his home.

“My wife had woken up my other son and told him to wake up the other son who were sleeping downstairs. I ran upstairs, grabbed my daughter, and wrapped her in her whole blanket,” Humphrey said.

Through the chaos, Humphrey and his wife tried to rescue their cats, but sadly, 10-year-old Leo and 6-month-old Slyve died in the fire.

“One of the things that actually hurts talking with people is that, yeah, you should be happy. Your family made it out. My family didn’t make it out. My people children, made it, but my babies did not,” said Humphrey.

Humphrey said renter’s insurance won’t cover all of the costs caused by the fire. He’s currently covered for $61,000. But he said early estimates suggest it will cost $150,000 to replace his belongings.

“I put my renters insurance years ago; I never thought about you need to update your policy as you grow and build things in your life. You need to have those covered,” he said.

As Humphrey and his family keep hope alive and take this current challenge day by day, he encourages people to beware of the risks with electric bikes.

“I did the best-case scenario, and my house still burned down,” Humphrey said.

Humphrey is hoping for help from the community. He is asking anyone who wants to help to email him at MHumphrey84@hotmail.com.