Lithium-ion battery fires on the rise: Chicago Fire Department takes action

CHICAGO — Lithium-ion batteries power lots of our everyday electronic devices. However, if these batteries are flawed, they have the potential to cause serious harm or even death.

The Chicago Fire Department now tracks lithium-ion battery fires, which are happening more and more across the world. These batteries can explode without much notice and ignite fire even if they're not charging.

Lithium-ion batteries are a type of e-battery used to power dozens of devices from cell phones to laptops, electric cars, power tools, e-bikes and e-scooters. The batteries store lots of energy and can overheat and ignite without much notice if not properly protected.

"If you hear hissing or see smoke get out and call 911," Ryan Rivera, Commanding Fire Marshal for the Chicago Fire Department said.

Lithium-ion battery fires are happening across the globe regularly. A large explosion on October 30 rocked a lithium ion battery-recycling plant in Missouri. And an e-bike battery left on charge is the likely culprit behind a fiery explosion that lit a room in a Sydney, Australia hostel. In North Carolina a family's car seat was destroyed after an e-battery in a children's book overheated. And fire started in an Oklahoma home after one of the family dogs got hold of a lithium-ion battery cable.

"These are burning over 1,000 degrees within split seconds and any combustible around it is going to ignite," Rivera said.

Experts at UL Solutions, a third party that tests, inspects and certifies lithium-ion batteries, say most fires associated with the batteries involve batteries that haven't been certified.

Since 1995 more than 1,900 people have been injured and over 300 killed after a battery in a micro-mobility device like an e-bike or e-scooter caught fire. And more than 2,000 were injured and close to 200 died from faulty lithium-ion batteries in products like laptops, according to UL Solutions.

CFD is keeping a close eye on how New York City handles these fires, which have become more common as e-bikes and e-scooters get more popular.

Video shows massive explosion rip through battery processing plant in Missouri

"People weren't really aware of the dangers and they were finding a lot of fires indoors because they're bringing these things in doors, they're charging them with the wrong charger they replace the battery with the wrong battery," Rivera said.

According to FDNY's press office, since 2022 through October 28, 2024, FDNY has investigated more than 600 lithium-ion battery fires that injured hundreds of people and took 25 lives.

To help prevent the same destruction from happening in Chicago, CFD is taking steps like, recently putting out its first lithium-ion battery fire PSA.

Rivera says the fire department is in the initial stages of tracking the fires. He says in the past year ten fires were potentially caused by bad lithium-ion batteries.

When it comes to your safety experts offer these tips:

"There have been some terrible deaths by these fires," says 50th Ward Alderman Debra Silverstein.

Thanks to a new city ordinance spearheaded by Silverstein, who serves as the chairman of the License and Consumer Protection Committee, starting in 2025 CFD is required to report to the mayor and city council on fires related to powered bikes and mobility devices.

The law also requires people selling and manufacturing products like e-bikes in Chicago to make sure the batteries are tested by an accredited lab and meet UL or EN standards. Also, selling and making batteries from used lithium-ion batteries is prohibited.

"This is more on the manufacturers to make sure that when they are selling them to a consumer that they are safe," Silverstein said.

About an hour southwest of Chicago WGN met up with fire chief Tracey Steffes who leads the Morris Fire Protection District.

"I did not plan on becoming this deep with lithium batteries at this stage in my career," Steffes said.

On June 29, 2021, Steffes took on a plight he'd never experienced in his more than 30 years fighting fires.

"When I pulled up, I had an individual to tell me about lithium batteries stored in the building," he said.

Huge clouds of smoke poured out of the town's old paper mill, which at the time of this fire was storing a variety of damaged batteries, some certified, others not certified Steffes believes. According to a U.S. EPA report an estimated 184,000 pounds of lithium batteries caught fire inside. No injuries were reported.

"We fought that fire for 28 days," Steffes said.

Putting out a lithium-ion battery fire typically requires a lot more water than an average fire. Steffes says even when using additional water, these fires are hard to control because of a chemical reaction that can occur inside of a damaged e-battery called thermal runaway. Thermal runaway amounts to uncontrollable heat, often igniting explosions, releasing toxic fumes. Steffes said the reaction has to run its course naturally.

"When a battery goes into thermal runaway that process is next to impossible to stop whether it's a car whether it's a drill battery," he said.

Previous Story: Fire at commercial building prompts evacuations in Morris

Shortly after the Morris lithium battery fire started, about 3,000 residents, including Russ Farmer had to evacuate their homes for a couple of days.

"Everything was being covered with the smoke and the smell in the air that air was not very fresh to say the least at that time," Farmer said.

Now knowing how dangerous lithium batteries can be Farmer says he's a lot more aware of where he stores them and how they're disposed.

When it comes to properly getting rid of lithium-ion batteries, again you shouldn't throw them away. You can drop them off at some big box stores, like the Home Depot. Also, in Chicago the household chemicals and computer recycling facility on north branch street in goose island accepts them.