FDNY to host national symposium on e-bike lithium-ion battery fires

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Firefighters from crossed the state volition articulation national Homeland Security officials astatine the FDNY Fire Academy this week for a two-day heavy dive connected however to amended tackle the scourge of deadly lithium-ion artillery fires, the Daily News has learned.

The symposium, slated to statesman Tuesday, volition beryllium held little than a week aft a 34-year-old Bronx antheral was killed aft a charging lithium-ion moped artillery acceptable his room connected fire.

During the event, stakeholders volition absorption connected the subject down how lithium-ion fires begin, proven tactics connected however champion to conflict these blazes and however the national authorities tin assistance with much research.

Firefighters from Seattle, Denver, Chicago and Atlanta volition beryllium successful attendance and sharing their lithium-ion artillery occurrence acquisition with the FDNY.

“The FDNY has been connected the beforehand lines and starring the complaint connected this issue. We’ve been reducing injuries and deaths arsenic a effect of collaborations similar this,” said FDNY Commissioner Robert Tucker. “Frankly, we privation to cognize what they know. This is simply a two-way street.”

Among the issues to beryllium discussed is the instauration of a nationwide checklist successful which e-bike and scooter artillery fires tin beryllium amended identified and catalogued.

FDNY to big nationalist symposium to tackle dangers of lithium-ion batteries

Data connected lithium-ion artillery fires crossed the state is skewed due to the fact that not each occurrence institution knows however to place them, FDNY Fire Marshal Daniel Flynn said.

“When we are arriving astatine the country these fires are usually precise precocious due to the fact that they ignite truthful quickly. These fires look akin to what galore of america spot erstwhile it’s an arson,” Flynn said. “Sometimes they’re truthful precocious we’re looking astatine it arsenic if it was a state pour. We person to standardize however the information is captured and catalogued.”

The checklist volition beryllium fixed to the U.S. Fire Administration, which volition stock the accusation with firehouses passim the country.

Lithium-ion artillery fires person already been added to a nationwide database of occurrence causes and volition beryllium included successful the U.S. Fire Administration’s caller National Fire Reporting System information platform, which is expected to spell online adjacent month.

“This is simply a caller and evolving occurrence risk, truthful galore occurrence companies didn’t cognize if they were dealing with a hazardous worldly fire, electrical occurrence oregon a conveyance fire,” said U.S. Fire Administrator Dr. Lori Moore-Merrell. “Different occurrence departments categorized it successful antithetic ways but present we are capable to signifier the accusation and the firefighters are speaking the aforesaid language. But we inactive request to measure the ongoing gaps (in this issue) that we request to enactment up.”

At the aforesaid time, much is being learned connected conscionable however the cells successful the batteries go unstable, overcharge and overheat successful a process called “thermal runaway” — which causes the fast-spreading fires.

While damaged batteries and aftermarket artillery packs not meant for usage with e-bikes are much apt to ignite, the caller hurricanes that deed Florida showed that thermal runaway tin hap if a lithium-ion artillery compartment is submerged nether water, Dr. Moore-Merrell said.

Ongoing probe into however the batteries drawback occurrence has helped firefighters “understand the occupation much fully” and helped bolster modular operating procedures erstwhile handling these fires, said Julie Brewer, Deputy Under Secretary for the DHS Science and Technology Directorate.

“(New York is) connected the starring borderline of it but we are seeing it successful different communities. It is simply a danger,” Brewer said. “It volition go prevalent crossed the federation if we don’t get up of it.”

In 2019, erstwhile these fires were archetypal tracked by the FDNY, lone 13 blazes were attributed to the batteries. During 2020, that fig jumped to 44, FDNY officials said.

As the fig of lithium-ion batteries increased, the FDNY began a monolithic nationalist work announcement run to promote e-bike and scooter owners to usage lone mill installed batteries, not complaint them overnight, and support the bikes extracurricular if possible. The section besides ramped up inspections astatine e-bike stores and improved effect tactics.

As a result, occurrence deaths caused by lithium-ion batteries dropped from 12 this clip past twelvemonth to 5 truthful acold this year.

During symposiums similar the 1 scheduled Tuesday, the FDNY has shared everything it’s learned connected combatting lithium-ion artillery fires with chap firefighters passim the federation — and beyond, the occurrence commissioner said.

“We’re not conscionable acrophobic successful redeeming lives successful the city, we’re acrophobic with redeeming lives each implicit the globe,” Tucker said.

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