PROTECT yourself and others

Protect yourself and others from harm. At their worst a lithium battery on fire, and its secondary ignitions, create an unstable chain reaction of explosions, fire and smoke that can be deadly. Recognise that once taken hold there may be nothing you can safely do other than call the fire brigade.

The two fires analysed so far in our pursuit of this topic both escalated in minutes to a level of heat, smoke and destruction making amateur intervention impossible.  This is the extreme case.  Just as important is the micro case – the risk of picking up a battery where perhaps one cell has ignited, and you grab it to throw outside – just as the second cell ignites. 

Recognise we are dealing with a potentially unstable event and clear judgement on the risk is required at all times.