Firefighters are warning that battery fires from discarded electronics are on the rise
National Fire Chiefs Council warns that fires involving lithium-ion batteries are a catastrophe waiting to happen.
Firefighters and advocates are cautioning that discarded lithium-ion batteries in electronics are becoming more common and leading to fires.
Batteries hidden in electronics cause fires when crushed in recycling centers, bins, and collection vehicles.
The study by Material Focus, a nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing electronic waste, revealed that 1.6 billion batteries were thrown away in the past year.
Lithium-ion batteries are commonly found in devices such as laptops, phones, tablets, earbuds, and vapes.
Dangerous
The National Fire Chiefs Council stated that lithium-ion battery fires pose a danger to the public, waste site workers, and firefighters due to the risk of chemical exposure and reignition.
Mark Andrews, waste and recycling fires lead for the National Fire Chiefs Council, emphasized, “Fires involving waste have always been challenging, but lithium-ion batteries significantly increase the risks by creating unknown and unpredictable dangers.
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“These fires can be explosive and spread rapidly with the risk of reignition and toxic gasses a risk to firefighters. These incidents also tie up large numbers of finite, fire service resources and firefighters to fully control and extinguish the fire creating further risks to the community.”
Phil Clark from the National Fire Chiefs Council cautioned, “Fires resulting from improper disposal of lithium-ion batteries are a disaster waiting to happen. Fire services are handling a growing number of incidents, but they are preventable through correct and careful disposal of electronics.”
Precious Materials
Material Focus’s Recycle Your Electricals executive director, Scott Butler, urged the public to recycle them.
“With the increasing number of products containing lithium-ion batteries and the rise in battery fires, it is crucial to prevent these fires and reduce their impact on our communities and the risks they pose to firefighters and waste officers,” he said.
“We are also discarding some of the most valuable materials on the planet, essential for our economy.
“We urge everyone to avoid discarding and always recycle their electronics and batteries. Simply search ‘recycle your electricals’ to locate your nearest drop-off point.”
The financial implications of battery fires are substantial.
James Nicholson, chief claims officer at Zurich UK, stated, “Lithium battery-related fires have become a real concern in recent years, with costs in some cases reaching up to £20 million. They not only cause significant damage but also disrupt activities while repairs are being carried out.”
Earlier this year, experts told The Epoch Times that lithium battery fires in electric vehicles, including buses, could be extremely perilous.
If a petrol or diesel internal combustion engine (ICE) catches fire, it can be extinguished relatively quickly by the fire brigade using standard hoses. However, this is not the case with electric vehicles, which are powered by lithium battery packs integrated into them.
Matt Humby, a senior technical consultant at fire extinguisher manufacturer Firechief Global, explained to The Epoch Times, “Once they go into thermal runaway, lithium battery fires are very challenging to put out. We have witnessed lithium battery modules burning even underwater. Flames can be visible underwater.”
“Water can cool but might not halt the thermal runaway event. Each cell may go into thermal runaway, leading to a chain reaction. The aim is to prevent this chain reaction. Eventually, with approximately 30,000 liters of water, the battery module will be cooled adequately for the electric vehicle to extinguish the battery fire,” he added.
PA Media and Chris Summers contributed to this report.
