E-bike battery fires 'fairly new' to Cambridgeshire and Peterborough firefighters, says union
A report found more lithium-ion battery fires may have gone under-reported
The Fire Brigades Union in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough believes dealing with fires relating to lithium-ion batteries are still new to firefighters.
His comment comes after a report discussed at a Cambridgeshire Fire Authority meeting on October 3 found the actual number of incidents relating to these batteries, used to power devices like e-bikes and e-scooters, may have been under-reported.
There have been 10 fires caused by faulty e-bikes or e-scooter batteries between 2018 and this year, according to the report.
Mark Harriss is the secretary of the county's Fire Brigades Union branch:
"The amount of lithium-ion incidents we're attending currently has seen a massive increase, mainly due to the popularity of e-bikes and e-scooters," he said.
"It's a fairly new type of incident for firefighters, so the information that's out there isn't quite complete yet.
"The vast majority of e-bikes and e-scooters are relatively safe and it's only a few that cause the danger."
Data system issue could mean more fires have gone unrecorded
The report said that there is a limited amount of data in relation to lithium-ion battery fires in the UK "mainly due to deficiencies in the national Incident Recording System (IRS)".
It said: "The current IRS data collection process works does mean that there is a possibility that incidents involving lithium-ion batteries have been under-reported (due to the need to add that detail into an open text box)."
Between October 2022 and this month, Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service have attended 277 accidental dwelling fires with 64 of these thought to have been caused by an electrical failure.
"The trend will continue to rise"
Mr Harriss, who's also a firefighter, believes the trend in lithium-ion battery fires will jump.
"The lithium inside the batteries react with water, so putting water creates additional hazards and heat, so it's really difficult to try and contain once they get going," he said.
"I suppose the trend will continue to rise - the e-scooters and e-bikes are a popular mode of transport so unless there is regulation from government, local or national, I think we'll see an increase."
What's being done to highlight the dangers of these fires?
The National Fire Chiefs' Council (NFCC) has produced e-bike and fire safety guidance in response to the rise in lithium-ion battery fires and their risks.
Some measures include providing operational training for Cambridgeshire firefighters on how to deal with fires where lithium-ion batteries are or suspected to be involved.
The NFCC alongside Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service is also setting up a joint team to work with the Cambridge Landlord Forum in identifying specific threats and emerging risks posed by e-bikes and e-scooters.