ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A St. Petersburg homeowner believes an an e-scooter sparked a fire at her home earlier this month.
Monica Snead says the fire started on November 13, 2025 around 8:00 a.m.
WATCH: St. Petersburg homeowner believes an e-scooter caused house fire
She heard a noise in one of the bedrooms. Once she saw flames and smoke, she shut the bedroom door.
"Unfortunately, you know, I've lost a huge part of my home and it's going to be very challenging to recover from this," said Snead.
She believes a lithium-ion battery inside an e-scooter started the fire.
The fire damaged the hallway, bedrooms and a bathroom.
"Please don't leave scooters in the house, you know, lithium-ion batteries, I really didn't have a whole lot of knowledge about lithium-ion batteries, but I do now. I know about the electric scooters and electric cars, don't even sleep with your cell phones in your bed underneath the pillow," she said.
Snead said the fire destroyed most of her grandson's belongings.
She has been cleaning up the mess for several days.
"We have been clearing things out since this happened. I spent my birthday here, you know, trying to get stuff out, clothes destroyed, photo albums destroyed," she said.
Snead said she is still counting her blessings.
"I'm just grateful to be alive, grateful that my grandchildren weren't here in this bedroom asleep and it didn't happen in the middle of the night. I'm grateful for that and grateful to God that the whole house isn't gone," she said.
A GoFundMe page is raising money to help Snead make home repairs.
The home has been in her family since 1977.
Share Your Story with Julie
From the courtroom to your commute, Julie Salomone works to share the issues that matter to you. She also focuses on the day-to-day issues in Sarasota County, so be sure to reach out to Julie to start a conversation.
.
'It’s become a health hazard': Treasure Island targets overgrown lawns after Helene
No matter how much he’d like to forget about Hurricane Helene, Scott Baker still sees reminders on all sides of his Treasure Island home.
