Police investigations are underway after a group of e-scooters were allegedly set alight on a street in the Hobart CBD overnight.
Crews from the Tasmania Fire Service responded to reports of the burning Beams on the corner of Liverpool and Harrington Street just after 11pm on Thursday.
Images shared exclusively with Pulse show a group of people crowded around the scooters just seconds before authorities arrived, laughing as flames engulfed the devices.
At least seven Beam e-scooters were damaged in the incident.
The attack comes as the City of Hobart yesterday gave Beam 24 hours to show cause as to why their e-scooter licence should not be revoked.
The council’s move follows allegations of under-reporting of active scooters in other cities and calls from councillors to remove the purple e-scooters from the capital’s streets.
“We have issued Beam with a show cause notice. The company will have until close of business, Friday 6th September, to respond,” City of Hobart CEO Michael Stretton said.
Stretton says if Beam fails to meet its contractual obligations and provide a satisfactory response, the city “will have no hesitation in cancelling its licence”.
