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The chief of the Dashwood Volunteer Fire Department in Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island is warning about the dangers of lithium batteries.
Fire Chief Nick Acciavatti said he had a new lithium polymer battery that he had purchased this week for an airsoft gun.
He said the battery was removed from the gun when it had run out of charge — then, 15 minutes later, it self-detonated and exploded.
Acciavatti said the battery was not charging or plugged into anything when it was set down on the floor.
“My spouse was out in the garage, walked out of the garage, you could hear the smoke alarm going off and went into the house and the house was full of smoke,” Acciavatti said.
“(She) went into the boys’ bedroom and on the floor is this battery, self-detonating, not charging, not plugged in with a small scarf beside it, which was touching the battery (and) was catching the scarf on fire, which was trying to catch the closet on fire.”
He added that his wife grabbed a pot of water from the kitchen but by the time she got back into the bedroom, part of the closet and some clothes were catching on fire.
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She also ended up burning her hand.
“She’s pretty upset,” Acciavatti said.
“You know, she hears stories about the stuff I go to and (to) actually have it happen in your own home when you try and do everything that you’re supposed to be doing, it is pretty traumatic for her,” he said.
“I feel bad for her that she had to experience (that) in our own home.”
Acciavatti said he’s thankfully they have a lot of working smoke alarms otherwise they could have lost their house.
“We were just lucky that the timing for her to come in the house and notice it was spot on,” he said.
“And she did everything right.”
According to the City of Vancouver, in order to care for a battery, people should:
- Buy devices that are listed by a qualified testing laboratory (for example, it has the UL mark for Underwriters Laboratory)
- Always follow manufacturer’s instructions
- Only use the charging cord that came with the device
- Never charge a device under your pillow, on your bed, or under your couch
- Keep batteries at room temperature, do not place in direct sunlight, or keep in hot vehicles
- Store batteries away from anything that can catch fire
- Never disassemble or alter batteries in an attempt to enhance their performance
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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