Make sure to buy, charge, and recycle batteries this Fire Prevention Week.
The theme for this year’s week (October 5 – 11) is Charge into Fire Safety: Lithium-Ion Batteries in Your Home, where firefighters are educating communities on how to use these batteries safely.
Public educator for the Perth West fire department Jess Jorritsma said there are things that can go wrong with these batteries, including mechanical damage.
“Every time we drop our phone, we might think it’s not a big deal but you’re essentialy damaging your device at that point,” said Jorritsma.
“A lithium-ion battery is a device/battery that has a lot of energy stored in a small amount of space, and when it’s exposed to too much heat or it’s damaged, it can lead to thermal runaway. That can be an overheating of the device where the batteries can explode or catch fire.”
Fire Prevention Officer for the Perth East Fire Department Shalyn Herrett said several devices that use these batteries, including e-scooters, e-bikes, e-cigarettes, smoke alarms, toys, and EV cars.
She added you should check and make a list of the devices you have that use these batteries.
They encourage you to buy products using these batteries that have a safety certification mark like UL, ETL, or CSA, use the cords that come with the products to charge them, and to recycle your battery or device in a safe battery recycling location.
Fire departments across Perth County are also holding open houses, including one on Milverton Station, Shakespeare Station, Sebringville Station, Mitchell, and St. Marys.
