COLUMBUS, Ohio — When a truck carrying lithium-ion batteries caught fire in Franklinton on Thursday morning, the Columbus Fire Department was ready.
“Last year we had an outside company come in and get us up to speed on some of the hazards and the challenges you are gonna face in these fires,” said Battalion Chief Jeffrey Geitter.
A lithium-ion battery fire requires a specific approach and cannot be put out with just water.
“You can use water but nowhere near the water that we carry. We can put out a regular bedroom fire with, I would say, 750 gallons of water. That is kind of what our trucks carry. You are talking in the area of 15,000 gallons of water needed to extinguish an EV battery in a car,” he said.
The strategy is to isolate the fire and let the burn run out.
“The policy for us is continue to learn and train because it is new technology but in the short term, remove everything around it. Basically, we call them exposures. People, buildings, cars, do our best to minimize other things from coming into contact with it,” said Geitter.
In Thursday’s fire, there was concern about the other lithium-ion batteries in the truck, so the department had to open the truck to release pressure.
“We didn’t want there to be. I don’t want to say an explosion, but for lack of a better word because it was in a sealed container it could have become that,” he said.
The state does not keep track of lithium-ion fires yet, but according to the state fire marshal’s office, there were 81 battery-related fires between 2020 and 2024.
Tom Bensen, co-founder of Energy Safety Response Group, trains firefighters for scenarios with lithium-ion batteries.
When a lithium-ion battery fire looks to be producing smoke, it should be taken seriously.
“Looks like smoke, often a very white cloud which is the off-gas, sometimes that can rise in the air or go toward the ground but that is the risk because of those two substances that are in there, different than the byproducts of fire,” he explained.
As the batteries become more common in the products we use every day, he said consumers need to use their lithium-ion batteries in the right way, like pairing cellphones with the right chargers.
“We will notice a lot of times that our phone is getting hot, we as a consumer are not being educated and abusing the lithium-ion battery in it, which over time could cause that to fail,” Bensen said.
Bensen and Geitter both said to be sure products with lithium-ion batteries are certified.
At any sign of smoke, evacuate the area and call 911.
To learn more about lithium-ion batteries, click here.