The deadly fire Saturday on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside was caused by an exploding lithium ion battery, municipal fire and rescue services confirmed. Firefighters are alerting the population to increasing incidents of igniting batteries and calling for vigilance.
Matthew Trudeau, public information officer for Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services, said Monday that Saturday’s fire was the seventh deadliest fire in the city this year. Five of these seven fires is caused by lithium ion batteries and battery -powered electronic devices.
Firefighters are advising the population to be more vigilant in using and recharging these batteries, which can be found in electric scooter, electric bike, electric unicycle [et] even cellphones.
” We are seeing a dramatic increase in fires and over 70% of our fire deaths are now caused by these fires. [de batteries au lithium ionique]. “
Matthew Trudeau also reminds us of the need to have a working smoke detector in your home and outside your home, and make sure you sleep with the door closed.
He explained that since 2016, fires caused by lithium ion batteries have increased by 500%. He describes this trend as worrying and assured that a group of educators will meet with the public to talk about safety measures to be taken with lithium ion batteries, especially in the Downtown Eastside district.
Ineffective water killers
Firefighters observed several types of problems: fire due to overload and a thermal runaway effect, causing the fire. extremely dangerous and difficult to killexploding batteries, changes to dangerous equipment, broken cord or broken charger.
These types of fires, Matthew Trudeau explains, are difficult to remove with just a water extinguisher because of the runaway effect.
According to the National Research Council of Canada: Thermal runaway is the most serious form of battery failure. It refers to the rapid heating of a battery under the effect of an exothermic chemical reaction that occurs between the strongly oxidizing positive electrode and the strong reduction of the negative electrode. At this point, the reaction is irreversible, and the battery is completely consumed.
The NRC added thatduring a thermal event, the battery can reach high temperatures with or without flames, which can ignite adjacent combustible materials, including other batteries. During a thermal event, the cell can explode and release flammable, melted, or hot materials, creating a fire hazard in the surrounding combustible materials.
Vancouver Fire Chief Karen Fry said this is not only a problem in Vancouver, but something we’re starting to see all over North America.
” [Ces batteries] is safe when used appropriately and safe when purchased through Canada and reputable places and not purchased from Amazon [en provenance d’un] place that has not been tested [ou] fakes. “
The fire chief wants more public education and research into the deaths and fires associated with the lithium ion battery. Last year we had five deaths in total; and this year five of our deaths have been linked to batteries [au lithium ionique].
Radio Canada
Source: Radio-Canada
