SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) \u2014 The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted on Tuesday to pass legislation that will ban selling non-certified lithium-ion batteries.<\/p>\n
Supervisor Bilal Mahmood wrote, \u201cThese 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.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mahmood said the new city ordinance will allow the San Francisco Fire Department to \u201ctarget and penalize\u201d violators who sell batteries that are not certified and fail to meet safety requirements.<\/p>\n
As lithium-ion technology continues expanding rapidly in electric cars, scooters, and bicycles, firefighters said they are battling more battery-sparked fires.<\/p>\n
A Mission District resident was hospitalized after a electric bike\u2019s lithium-ion battery<\/a> ignited inside a home on 15th Street last month.<\/p>\n On June 13, firefighters responded to an apartment building fire at 34 6th Street that was sparked by an electric scooter. \u201cThe 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,\u201d SFFD officials wrote.<\/p>\n Two days later, a lithium battery ignited in an apartment building at 1095 Mission Street. The building\u2019s sprinkler system helped douse the flames, fire officials said.<\/p>\n On June 4, a fire spread in the garage of a four-story residential building on Geary Boulevard. \u201cFirefighters 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,\u201d SFFD wrote.<\/p>\n E-bike lithium battery sparks fatal fire in San Jose <\/a><\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n SFFD officials wrote Tuesday, \u201cLithium\u2011ion batteries can overheat or catch fire if misused. Use certified devices and the correct battery (and) charger. Don\u2019t charge on beds, couches, or under pillows.\u201d Batteries should be unplugged once they are fully charged.<\/p>\n