An electric scooter burst into flames while it was charging at a flat in Msida on Sunday.

The incident, reported to the authorities by neighbours, happened in Triq il-Qawsalla at 1.30pm.

Neighbours reported smoke coming out of the ventilation of a fifth-storey flat accompanied by a smell of burnt plastic and rubber. 

After repeatedly knocking on the front door of that flat and not getting an acknowledgement, they contacted the authorities. 

Once the fire department was on the scene, firefighters forced the front door open and let the thick smoke out through the balcony window. 

The scooter that caught fire is the small white one in the foreground. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

The CPD station officer in charge of the scene confirmed that no one was in the flat during the incident and that most of the damage is due to the smoke. 

It is suspected that the electric scooter malfunctioned while it was charging. 

Once the smoke was let out, the fire department pulled the charred scooter out from the balcony, removed the battery and placed it in water to avoid any further incidents.