Lithium e-Scooter Battery Fire - LFB

[Steve]

I've been sent this video from a fire in Leytonstone, East London a couple of weeks ago. The fire was caused by a lithium battery on an e-scooter/bike. Look at the fire behaviour the batteries flaring are creating an overpressure which look like mini-backdraughts.

I am led to believe that LFB attended 120 fires caused by there type of batteries last year and 25 involving lithium batteries so far this year?

I know the Sub Officer in charge, a 30 year vet, no drama as he slowly ambles off the truck putting his helmet on. 😉

[Sparkie112]

Really interesting and great to capture this prior to firefighting. Assuming that the battery isn’t the largest, that’s some considerable over pressure, not to mention the additional flammable gases and by products from Li-Batteries. Be interesting to know more about the job - this is the next generation of fires right here 

[Messyshaw]

Scary stuff @Steve

Where I used to work stored and used numerous specialist  lithium batteries of various sizes.  We were involved with some significant research into the risk of fire and the finding are very worrying, especially where batteries may be subject to abuse for example, physical damage (such as a scooter)

For me, the biggest problem is the speed of fire development  which makes a nonsense of established building regulations and other standards. For example, a 18m long office with a door at one end is easily permissible. But if someone is charging up their scooter by the door and it ignites, there is a reasonable chance people at the end of the office will struggle to get past it.

Now think of  the same speed of development in a house, flat, shop - or God forbid a hospital or residential home!!  As Sparkie says, this is the next generation of fires, and most FRS don't carry the right media to deal with such fire at the early stages. That may have to change 

We invested in Aqueous Vermiculite Dispersion (AVD) fire extinguishers, which are very expensive, but the only real chance where bulk storage or multiple charging is taking place 

[Noddy]

Unless there is a clamp down on the cheap and nasty Chinese stuff coming in, I agree with sparkie 100%. 

[WTTJ]

We had in incident in Avon recently where a whole warehouse of e-scooters caught fire. Thankfully the crews in attendance (not my watch so not self congratulatory) knocked it back before any thermal run away. 

However the possibilities could have been devastating for the whole trading estate if it had got away from them.

[Keith]

Reviving this one, e-scooters and e-bikes continue to cause concern and there's calls for better regulation.

 

[BurtMacklin]

Something quite interesting that came through the email a while ago was pics of a bulk charging point for whatever companies rental bikes and it was just a caged off area in an underground car park with no compartmentation or other safety systems, the crew found it completely by accident when attending an AFA