Surge in lithium-ion battery fires in San Francisco in recent years: here’s what you need to know

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Devices equipped with lithium-ion batteries are becoming more and more popular. They are found in everything from bicycles to scooters, from computers to cars, and this also leads to an increase in fires if proper precautions are not taken.

It happened in 30 seconds. Here’s what a San Francisco homeowner said off-camera about the fire that broke out in his garage on Thursday.

The perpetrator had a leaf blower with a recharging lithium-ion battery.

“He is described as explosive. Very fast. The battery heats up very quickly and releases poisonous gas,” said SF Fire Capt. Justin Schorr.

No injuries were reported in this case, but it is an example of the growing number of fires involving lithium-ion batteries.

MORE: Lithium-ion battery bill moves from House to Senate to push for safety standards

“Over the last four years, the San Francisco Fire Department has seen a significant increase in the number of lithium-ion battery fires caused by these devices,” said Captain Schorr.

We looked at data up to 2017. In the same year, two battery-related fires were reported. In 2021, this number increased to 15. In 2022, one person died in one of these fires.

So far this year, there have been 15 fires caused by these batteries. The fire department expects there will be at least five more by the end of the year.

“When batteries become damaged, they can be improperly charged and cause an explosive fire,” Captain Schorr said.

The owner of Warm Planet Bikes recommends that people check to see if their batteries are UL certified.

MORE: San Francisco to set new rules for electric bikes and scooters powered by lithium-ion batteries

MORE: How to prevent electric bikes and electric scooters from catching fire

“They were designed and tested to make sure they wouldn’t explode,” said Kash, owner of Warm Planet Bikes.

Some of these batteries and chargers are expensive, which causes some people to buy fake brands.

“They are simply pumped out in small factories across Asia and imported as quickly as possible. There’s a gold rush going on and they don’t care about safety,” Kash said.

Earlier this year, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to create a safety standard for certain lithium-ion battery-powered devices, but industry representatives are demanding more intervention.

“The industry has been begging for legislation to clarify this issue. Local ordinances are great, but ultimately we need to prevent the import of non-standard and substandard electrical systems, as happened with the hovercraft boards,” Kash said.

MORE: How to prevent electric bikes and electric scooters from catching fire

Here are the fire brigade recommendations:

“You have to pay attention to what your battery looks like. If the battery begins to bulge, change color, or you notice that your scooter, bicycle, wheelchair – device has an unpleasant odor or discoloration, do not need to charge it and notify the manufacturer immediately, said Captain Schorr.

The San Francisco Fire Department recommends using only original charging cables and avoiding leaving batteries unattended for long periods of time.

“Plug this charging cable directly into the wall, not into a power strip. Not for the distributor, and especially not for the timer. You should not leave the battery charging overnight or when you are not at home,” said Capt. Schorr.

Captain Schorr suggests setting a timer on your phone that will disconnect the batteries once it is fully charged.