SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted on Tuesday to pass legislation that will ban selling non-certified lithium-ion batteries.
Supervisor Bilal Mahmood wrote, “These batteries have caused over 100 building fires, hundreds of families displaced, and millions in property damage. They are more prone to catch fire, and when they do burn faster and more toxic for our firefighters. This legislation will now ensure San Franciscans know that when they are purchasing an e-bike or scooter that it has a certified lithium ion battery.”
Mahmood said the new city ordinance will allow the San Francisco Fire Department to “target and penalize” violators who sell batteries that are not certified and fail to meet safety requirements.
As lithium-ion technology continues expanding rapidly in electric cars, scooters, and bicycles, firefighters said they are battling more battery-sparked fires.
A Mission District resident was hospitalized after a electric bike’s lithium-ion battery ignited inside a home on 15th Street last month.
On June 13, firefighters responded to an apartment building fire at 34 6th Street that was sparked by an electric scooter. “The incident involved an individual who used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, then jumped out of a second-story window. The cause of the fire was determined to be accidental, involving an electric scooter,” SFFD officials wrote.
Two days later, a lithium battery ignited in an apartment building at 1095 Mission Street. The building’s sprinkler system helped douse the flames, fire officials said.
On June 4, a fire spread in the garage of a four-story residential building on Geary Boulevard. “Firefighters made an aggressive interior attack and located one vehicle burning inside the garage. Investigators determined the cause to be accidental, resulting from a battery charging system on a gasoline-powered motor vehicle,” SFFD wrote.
E-bike lithium battery sparks fatal fire in San Jose
The fire department explained that battery fires can reach up to 3,000-degrees and release toxic chemicals including hydrogen fluoride, phosphorus pentafluoride, and phosphyl fluoride.
SFFD officials wrote Tuesday, “Lithium‑ion batteries can overheat or catch fire if misused. Use certified devices and the correct battery (and) charger. Don’t charge on beds, couches, or under pillows.” Batteries should be unplugged once they are fully charged.
San Francisco’s new ordinance amends the city’s fire code to prohibit the sale and delivery of lithium-ion batteries and replacement batteries that do not meet specified certification requirements.
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