Burlington Fire Warns About Lithium Battery Fires

The batteries in a phone, a laptop, a cordless drill and an e-bike are all the same kind, and Burlington Fire wants residents thinking about how they charge them. The department's Fire Prevention Week message this year comes in three parts: buy safe, charge safe, use safe.

Lithium-ion batteries are safe enough when used properly, but fire departments across Canada are answering more battery fires than ever. A damaged, defective or misused battery can overheat and fail, and the fires that follow move fast, burn hot and give off toxic smoke.

Buying safe means batteries, chargers and battery-powered devices from reputable manufacturers and retailers, carrying recognized safety certifications. Charging safe means using the manufacturer's own charging equipment, charging on a hard surface away from anything flammable, and not leaving a battery to charge overnight. Using safe means stopping right away if a battery overheats, swells, smells odd, hisses, smokes or looks damaged.

Smoke alarms matter more when a fire can grow this quickly. Burlington Fire is reminding residents to keep working alarms on every storey and outside sleeping areas, test them regularly, replace them every 10 years, and practise an escape plan the whole household knows. As of 2026, every home with a fuel-burning appliance, a fireplace or an attached garage also needs carbon monoxide alarms on every level and near all sleeping areas.

Spent rechargeable batteries should never go in the garbage or the regular recycling, where they can be crushed and start fires in collection trucks and sorting facilities. Halton Region's recycling and waste sorting tool covers where they do go, and Burlington Fire has more on charging and warning signs on its battery safety page.