Chelsea fire that injured 5 caused by lithium battery explosion, officials say

CHELSEA, Mass. — Officials say a weekend fire in Chelsea that injured several residents was caused by a battery explosion.

Elnardo Medina was terrified when he woke up to his house on fire late Friday night on Carmel Street in Chelsea.

“It’s really horrifying and the smell, my house still smells like it,” said Medina. “My girl was screaming on the other side of the fire, get out of the house, get out of the house, and I’m like what is going on, when I look at the floor, the battery was catching on fire, I’m like, oh my god that’s the battery.”

Fire officials now confirm that lithium-ion battery for the family’s electric scooter sparked those flames when it overheated while charging.

Firefighters were quick to put the fire out, but five people were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.

“The gases that come off a burning battery are very toxic, flammable,” said Chief John Quatieri of the Chelsea Fire Department.

Chief Quatieri says they’re seeing more and more fires caused by those lithium batteries especially for battery-powered scooters.

That’s why his department will now start bringing new meters to check the level of toxins in the air when responding to fires.

“Hydrochloric acid, hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen fluorine, benzine – so obviously we don’t want to be breathing that in, we want our firefighters on air all the time until we can get our meters in there to make sure it’s safe,” said Chief Quatieri.

The Chelsea Fire Department also just purchased containers to safely dispose of those batteries along with a powder to smother them since they can reignite.

“These are vented containers, so if pressure builds up the device won’t explode,” said Chief Quatieri.

The Chief says this should serve as a reminder to always charge those batteries outside, and if you can’t, don’t charge them in a place that will block your exit.

“I don’t want another battery, I’m really scared of them right now,” said Medina.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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