An electric scooter fire in Ottawa has officials urging people to ensure all lithium-ion battery products meet Canadian electrical standards and are properly maintained.
Firefighters were called to an apartment complex on Cathcart Street in Lowertown around 9am on New Year’s Day after two larger scooters burst into flames while under a carport.
“I didn’t know exactly what was burning,” said Jason Leduc, a neighbor who tried to put out the flames with a fire extinguisher and a hose while his partner called 911.
“It was up to the ceiling and it was, I mean, a super hot fire,” he said. “It was just an orange-red hot flame.”
Anna Cheung and Leduc smelled smoke and then saw the fire in their neighbor’s shed. Leduc tried to put it out with a fire extinguisher, but the flames were already too strong. (Kimberly Molina/CBC)
Thermal run
The cause of Sunday’s fire and whether it started with the electric scooters or they were just a casualty is still under investigation.
Yet as micro-mobility products – everything from e-bikes and e-scooters to hoverboards and e-unicycles – grow in popularity, there has been an increase in local fires linked to their lithium-ion batteries, with three such fires in Ottawa in the past three months.
“Scooters are everywhere,” said Gerry Gill, chief of safety for the Ottawa Fire Department. “People use them for transportation on city streets. They use them for delivery. Some people make a living out of them.”
They’re often charged indoors, Gill said, which can increase the danger of “thermal runaway” — a chemical chain reaction that occurs when battery cases become damaged, lose their insulation and lead to a short circuit.
What comes next, Gill said, can happen just as quickly as tossing a cigarette into a trash can.
“The fire will spread faster than you can get out of the room,” he said.
Warning signs include bubbling, popping or hissing sounds, followed by a cloud of white vapor coming from the battery, and an unpleasant sweet smell.
It’s not just fire that can be deadly: Hydrogen from batteries can mix with other chemicals to create hydrofluoric acid, Gill said, which is highly corrosive and can destroy tissue and bone.
William Leishman, owner of Scooteretti, an e-bike retailer in the ByWard Market, says there are concerns when a product doesn’t meet electrical safety standards set by the Underwriters Laboratories of Canada. (Kimberly Molina/CBC)
The commission sent a letter to 2,000 manufacturers in mid-December outlining safety concerns about products not meeting health and safety standards.
Between January 1 and November 28 last year, there were at least 208 fires or incidents where micromobility products overheated, the letter said. Nineteen people died, including a nine-year-old boy in New York, and at least 22 people were injured.
“There’s no set standard right now,” said William Leishman, who sells e-bikes at his ByWard Market store Scooteretti. He said he’s not surprised the fires are increasing.
It is not only used in e-scooters
Lithium-ion batteries are found in many other products, including cell phones, laptops, and electric toothbrushes. The Fire Department of New York said in an email to the CBC that it investigated 320 fires resulting in 10 deaths and hundreds of injuries from products using the batteries during the same period in 2022.
Gill said the best way to ensure a product remains safe is to follow the manufacturer’s specifications, check it regularly, not use an aftermarket charging cable and ensure the battery is stored at room temperature and gets decent air circulation.
Most of all, people should not do any modifications themselves without visiting a reputable repair shop.
“As a consumer, what’s really, really important is to do your homework,” he said.
“If it looks like a great deal or you’re dealing with a small company and the price looks attractive, if they don’t have any certifications, by all means, please avoid these products. You are doing yourself and your family a favor.
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