ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — St. Johns County Fire Rescue said they’ve seen a 6.5% increase in structure fires in the last year.
Lithium-ion batteries are a big reason why firefighters are battling more house fires.
“We’ve seen a definite influx in golf cart fires and e-bike fires,” said Chris Naff, the spokesperson for St. Johns County Fire Rescue. “If they get overcharged, they actually start expanding and heating up, and then that melts the outer shell, and that’s when they basically for, lack of a better term, explode.”
The county’s growing population is also something being attributed to the increase.
Read: St. Johns County releases stricter version of proposed e-bike safety law
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
Naff said there have been 82 structure fires since the start of this year.
And the majority of those have been garage fires.
“In the last month or two, probably 80% of our fires have been started in the garage,” said Naff.
The next time you plug in your electric vehicles, firefighters said, first and foremost, follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for charging.
“Typically, they are going to say plug them in and charge them to 100% or about 100%,” said Naff. “And unplug them from both the wall outlet where you have them and the apparatus that they are plugged into.”
If you can, Naff suggests charging them outside.
“That way, if it does catch fire, or it does spark, it’s away from your house and in your driveway,” said Naff.
And if your home does not already have a smoke detector in the garage, firefighters suggest installing one.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
