Local fire department warns of lithium-ion battery fire risks

CANONSBURG, Pa. — If a picture is worth a thousand words, Ring video from a house fire in Utah may be the warning some consumers need to see to make some changes.

In the surveillance video, you hear a loud boom and see family members scream and scramble, and a mom runs for the nearest fire extinguisher and then abandons it.

“I just threw the fire extinguisher and ran because I knew it was bigger than what I could handle,” Jody Burgoyne said.

She said firefighters told her a lithium-ion battery charger for a scooter started the fire.

The fire destroyed their home. Firefighters were only able to save a few family photos. One of the family’s pets died in the fire.

“It’s like before you buy something, you’re gonna have to think, ‘hmm, I could possibly lose everything, including a child, but is it worth having this scooter for? I don’t think so.’”

Canonsburg Volunteer Fire Chief Tim Solobay says consumers need to take more precautions to prevent fires.

Just last week, he and his department responded to a garbage truck fire they believe started with a lithium-ion battery from a lawn mower.

Solobay said the driver followed his training, driving the truck away from homes and businesses, calling the fire department and compressing the load.

“Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. In this case, it was a combination of both,” he said. “The fact is you really can’t always put them out. The reaction continues to go on.”

You likely have a lot of lithium-ion batteries around your home. The long-lasting batteries can be found in everything from laptops to smoke detectors to power tools.

Once one of those batteries is punctured, a chemical reaction starts and can lead to fire.

“They think ‘can’t happen to me. That happens to other people, doesn’t happen to me,’” Solobay said.

He warns that replacing chargers with third-party devices is a big culprit.

“If you have to replace it, replace it with what the manufacturer suggests. Don’t buy these third-party ones, because this is the kind of stuff, unfortunately, that can happen,” he said.

The National Fire Protection Association has tips for consumers.

They recommend only using the battery that is designed for a device, only using the charging cord that is intended for the device it came with and unplugging devices after they are fully charged. Don’t charge devices on your bed, under your pillow or on the couch. Do not throw lithium-ion batteries away. Instead, take them to a battery recycling location. Some hardware stores have drop-off boxes, and some community and fire departments have boxes set up as well.

Lastly, when you’re shopping for devices, make sure they are listed. That means it has been certified by a nationally recognized testing laboratory. That label should be on the box and on the device itself.

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