Battery believed to have caused Edmonton apartment fire that displaced dozens

A battery is believed to be responsible for a fire that forced dozens of residents from an Edmonton apartment building Wednesday evening, sending two people to hospital and prompting renewed warnings about lithium-ion battery safety.

Edmonton Fire Rescue Services says the blaze broke out on a balcony of the building, with flames shooting outward as crews arrived.

Two people were taken to hospital after 63 apartment units were evacuated, including one person in life-threatening condition.

EFRS district chief Paul Norrish said preliminary reports suggest the fire may have been caused by an electric bicycle battery that was charging at the time and experienced what firefighters call a “thermal runaway” — a chain reaction that causes batteries to overheat and ignite.

According to UL Research Institutes, an independent safety science organization, a thermal runaway occurs when the lithium-ion cell in a battery enters an uncontrollable, self-heating state that in turn can cause the ejection of gas, extremely high temperatures, smoke and fire.

Edmonton fire officials say there were eight lithium-ion battery fires in the city last year.

“These fires are aggressive and dangerous in nature,” Norrish said, adding that beyond the flames themselves, toxic off-gassing poses serious risks to both occupants and first responders.

Lithium-ion batteries are commonly found in electric vehicles, e-bikes, toys, power tools, cellphones and other household devices, and fire officials say incidents involving them are becoming more frequent as the technology becomes more widespread.

While generally considered safe to use, the federal government warns they still have the same safety risks as other kinds of batteries including overheating, fires and explosions, which in some cases can occur from overcharging.

In the summer of 2024, a home in Strathcona County was gutted because of a lithium-ion battery, and last spring a home in Calgary was also destroyed by the same thing in an electric bike.

The materials used in lithium-ion batteries are reactive to the air and fire experts say if the battery is breached, it can fail in an explosive manner.

Fire officials stress the danger is not limited to large batteries used in electric vehicles.

“People think about electric vehicle fires because those batteries are large and burn very intensely,” said Greg Rehman, president of the Edmonton Fire Fighters’ Union.

“But they don’t think about the smaller batteries in our homes that we use every day and how intense they can be and how fast they can spread.”

Rehman said firefighters are trained to deal with battery fires, but suppressing them requires significant resources.

The primary strategy is cooling the batteries to stop the chemical reaction.

“The biggest thing is they need to be in water — water, water and more water,” he said.

Because of the intensity and unpredictability of lithium-ion fires, first responders are urging the public to take precautions.

Rehman said batteries should be stored separately, kept out of direct sunlight, removed from chargers once full and properly disposed of if damaged.

He also warned apartment residents to be mindful of where batteries are stored.

“If you live in an apartment, you’re not storing it in the apartment — and if you are storing it in an apartment, make sure it’s not in the way of an exit,” he said.

Fire officials say Wednesday’s blaze highlights the growing hazards associated with battery-powered technology, not only for owners but also for emergency crews.

“There are contamination concerns with the batteries as well,” Norrish said.

“We don’t want crews exposed to that for any length of time.”

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

More information on reducing the risk of fire from lithium-ion batteries can be found on Strathcona County’s website.

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