Story By: John Feng, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Asia Wire Report

Video Credit: AsiaWire

This is the moment an electric scooter battery being charged suddenly bursts into flames and then explodes as acrid-looking smoke fills the building and people run for cover.

The heart-stopping incident, which left staff members running for their lives, was captured on CCTV cameras in Shanghai’s Xuhui District in East China.

The footage dated 23rd January shows a man handing his electric scooter’s battery to a male employee behind the front desk.

Picture Credits: AsiaWire

The staff member appears to agree to help charge the lithium-ion battery, which is plugged into the socket in the wall behind him.

The video then cuts to 12 minutes later when the male employee and his female colleague suddenly jump with fear at the sound of the battery bursting.

The pair then run for their lives when the charging battery begins emitting large plumes of grey smoke, with the woman running away and the man climbing over the counter to safety.

Guests and other staff members standing in the lobby then run for cover moments later when the smoking battery suddenly explodes into a ball of fire, shrouding the lobby in smoke.

The blaze was put out by the building’s fire safety personnel in two minutes.

No one is believed to have been harmed during the scare, but the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation.

It is also unclear whether charging the electric scooter battery indoors could be considered a punishable offence.