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NFPA Impact: The lithium-ion conundrum

Not a day goes by without an inquiry about lithium-ion batteries.

“How do we cool the battery if we have a limited water supply?”

“What do we do with the battery after it has burned?”

“How do we educate people about the dangers of lithium-ion batteries, especially e-bikes and e-scooters?”

“Are those blankets for EV fires any good?”

NFPA has mountains of materials to help fire departments plan for and mitigate lithium-ion battery incidents, from lesson plans and safety tip sheets to free online courses. Lithium-ion batteries function brilliantly until people muck with them by using off-market chargers or, in the case of food-delivery folks who need extended e-bike battery life, tinkering with the technology.

There are videos all over the internet of fires started by micro-mobility devices plugged into off-brand appliances that can’t regulate or stop the charging process, and of seemingly spontaneous electric vehicle fires in garages. 

Consumers who use lithium-ion batteries assume that because the batteries and the devices that require them are on the market, they’re safe. 

But as is the case with most technological advancements, rarely does anyone involved in the development of new products ask regulators or responders about the impact of the latest and greatest. Therefore, NFPA, the technical committees that have developed and are updating the NFPA 855 standard for energy storage systems, and every first-response agency in North America are playing catch up.

The International Association of Fire Chiefs, the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs, the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs, and the Ontario and British Columbia offices of the fire marshal / commissioner are working hard to help fire departments deal with the dangers of lithium-ion batteries, as are myriad other safety and response organizations.

For responders, NFPA and the Council of Canadian Fire Marshals and Fire Commissioners offer a free, online, EV training course. Visit nfpa.org and log in or create a profile (top right). Then go to nfpa.org/EV and scroll down to Preview Our EV Safety Training. Enter the code CanEV to access the training for free. Then, in your profile, scroll to Training to see the course. 

What about firefighter safety? Watch the webinar from NFPA’s Fire Protection Research Foundation by Ofodike Ezekoye at the University of Texas; there’s no fee, and it’s a great option for a training night. (nfpa.org/videos/firefighter-safety-on-firegrounds-involving-lithium-ion-batteries). 

The research foundation has completed studies on EV manufacturing and assembly, electric passenger vehicles, electric delivery vans and buses, the impact of EVs on infrastructure and facilities, the transport of EVs or alternative fueled vehicles, and exposures. Search “Research Foundation Projects and Reports” at nfpa.org.

Current research foundation projects include fire fighting response tactics, environmental impact of lithium-ion battery fires compared to other fuels, improved PPE cleaning, best practices / exposure assessment (phase 3), and lithium-ion battery gear contamination.

For fire prevention officers and fire- and life-safety officers, NFPA’s lesson plan – Charge into fire safety™, tip sheet (also available in French – search “safety tip sheets in other languages”), and new social media cards can be found on the lithium-ion battery safety page – just plug that phrase into the search box. All these resources are free to download. 

There’s also a page dedicated to micro-mobility devices: nfpa.org/ebikes, with tip sheets, videos and FAQs.  

And there’s a fact sheet about energy storage systems that’s useful for council, decision makers, planners, building officials, and developers. You can find that on the lithium-ion battery safety page.

Also for builders and designers, the results of two full-scale open-air tests on lithium-ion batteries are on the NFPA website; search “Sprinkler protection guidance for lithium-ion based energy storage systems.”

Although the NFPA 855 standard originally focused on stationary energy storage systems – large installations that support power grids – the updated 2023 edition, and the in-development 2026 edition, are motherlodes of information for fire departments and anyone who encounters lithium-ion batteries. You can find the standard through NFPA LiNK (nfpa.org/LiNK to begin a free two-week trial), or through free access at nfpa.org/855 (scroll down to FREE ACCESS). Annex C, considerations for fire fighting, is a key section.

Laura King is the NFPA’s regional director for Canada. Contact her at lking@nfpa.org.