More Destruction from the Lithium-Ion Battery
More Destruction from the Lithium-Ion Battery
In the little town of Otay Mesa, California, a fire broke out on May 14, 2024, and was not confirmed as out until 10 days later. What was the item that caused the fire to burn so fiercely for such an extended period--it was lithium ion batteries.The batteries were being stored at the Gateway Facility and operated by LS Power and its subsidiary, Rev Renewables. The San Diego Union Tribune reports the storage facility occupies 95,000 square feet and was storing approximately 6,700 racks of Lithium-ion batteries.
A CalFire official stated that at least 8 million gallons of water was poured on the fire. The county’s Hazmat team tested water runoff and smoke from the fire, fortunately no toxic levels were reported.
The cause of the explosion according to a fire official, may be attributed to something called “Thermal Runaway”. This action takes place essentially when the lithium-ion batteries get a little too warm and cannot cool down in time.
The National Fire Sprinkler Association of January 2023 states the following concerning Thermal Runaway:
“What makes lithium-ion battery fires so distinct is thermal runaway. This occurs when heat builds up in the battery faster than it can be dissipated, causing the battery to off gas or even explode.
Thermal runaway occurs when the battery is overcharged or overheated or suffers damage such as a puncture.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, a lithium-ion battery stored near or next to another battery or batteries can set off a chain reaction, making an already tough fire to fight even worse.
When they reach thermal runaway, lithium-ion battery fires can burn for hours or even days. One fire department learned this lesson first-hand after it took four hours and 30,000 gallons of water to extinguish a lithium-ion battery fire.”
I don’t know about you, but I have had enough. We can now look back on a roll call of the destruction of homes and contents and the unfortunate loss of life due to the lithium-ion battery failures in Smart Meters. We have the reported destruction and death that took place at the South Florida Trotting Center where 12 horses were burned to death and in addition to that, we can add the 43 Horses which were burned to death near the Belle Center, Ohio. Both of these tragedies were the result of malfunctioning of the Lithium-ion battery. In addition to the above fires, we have the horrific fire in South Korea, which took the life of 22 workers.
Right at this moment thousands of acres are on fire. Along with the fires, we also have the loss of homes and businesses. Homes are reported as exploding as a result of the heat from the fires, at this point, I am willing to suggest that the homes and business properties having exploded and burned were all furnished with Smart Meters which contained lithium-ion batteries that became overheated and exploded.
As a former Claims Adjuster, I was very often surprised at the approach the company I worked for took in relation to the Smart Meter related fires. We were willing to spend thousands of dollars to investigate the cause of an arson fire in which the loss was things that could be replaced, while turning our backs on the fires that were due to the Smart Meter failure. The most glaring example of this was the fire in San Diego. The San Diego Fire Department report stated that when the fire fighters entered the maintenance room for the restaurant, they saw two of the Smart Meters on fire, one of the meters being our insured’s. The investigation result of the case was not enough evidence was presented to examine the meter so the file was closed.
What is the value of a human life and what is the value in doing the right thing.
Respectfully Submitted,
Norman Lambe
nwlambe@gmail.com