CARMEL — Fire officials in Carmel are warning residents about a dangerous trend after batteries and charging equipment have contributed to a string of recent fires.
"They're fires started by batteries, charging batteries, power strips, and so forth," said Tim Griffin with the Carmel Fire Department. "Probably upwards of, you could even say, eight out of the last 10 fires in Carmel could possibly have been due to power strips."
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Griffin warned that the batteries from things like leaf blowers, lawn mowers and power tools can quickly become a fire risk when left charging for long periods unattended.
"You want to charge something and then unplug that, take it off, because they can get hot," Griffin explained. "You want to make sure that you're kind of following those best practices."
For homeowner John Brehn, his strategy is to make sure those chargers and batteries are never out of sight or out of mind.
"I keep them in a very visible area so that as soon as I walk out in the garage, I see that they're plugged in and that lets me know to take them out," Brehn told WRTV.
Griffin has a final word of caution: avoid using what he calls often unreliable aftermarket parts.
"Whichever company or tool or device that you're charging, make sure you're using the manufactured battery and the manufactured charger," Griffin said. "You want to make sure that those marry up well."
You can also find more information on how to dispose of faulty batteries by clicking the link here.
