A Lithium Ion factory in downtown San Diego went ablaze last week, causing an evacuation warning for businesses and homes in the area and the nearby state prison.
On May 15th, the Gateway Energy Storage Facility in Otay Mesa erupted into flames. It took firefighters 24 hours to “extinguish” the blaze. Only it wasn’t extinguished. It’s still on fire more than a week later and might continue for weeks. The fire has re-ignited for eight days so far and is not nearly extinguishing.
It’s not easy to put out, and it spews dangerous gases into the air. Gov. Gavin Newsom okays building them near homes, businesses, and schools.
But it will save the planet.
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“When we arrived on scene, there was light smoke,” Captain Mike Cornette with Cal Fire told FOX 5/KUSI on Thursday.
Businesses in the surrounding area were put on standby for evacuation while firefighters maintained a 600-foot safety barrier due to dangerous levels of hydrogen. A shelter in place order was also issued to Donovan State Prison, located about half a mile from the storage facility.
“We went into defensive action. We knew this was a battery storage facility. There’s some toxic gases and high heat that are attributed to that, so we called in extra support with the hazmat unit and the bomb squad to give us the extra tools,” Cornette explained.
The firefighters couldn’t enter the building for nearly 24 hours, so they used a special device to pump water into it. The property is being monitored for dangerous gases.
That wasn’t the end of it. The fire continued to smolder. After four days, the Union Tribune posted an article.
The San Diego Union Tribune
The long-smoldering battery plant fire in Otay Mesa neared the four-day mark Sunday with no indication that full containment was imminent.
Cal Fire Capt. Brent Pascua said mid-morning that the situation continued roughly as it was Saturday night, with 40 firefighters and five engines assigned.
“We still have light, wispy smoke coming from the fire,” Pascua said. “Our goal is to continue to keep it contained to the building it started in.”
After a week, Channel 7 weighed in.
Channel 7 Local
Their concerns come as a battery storage facility in Otay Mesa that caught fire has been burning for more than a week.
While firefighters are keeping watch on a fire at a battery storage facility in Otay Mesa that broke out last week, families in other parts of San Diego County are worried about similar projects in their communities.
In February 2022, renewable energy company Arevon began the process of getting permission to build a storage facility called “NightHawk” on Kirkham Way near Beeler Canyon Road in Poway. It’s an industrial area but not far from hundreds of homes.
“You got to put it somewhere, but I think out further away from residential areas would be better,“ Poway resident Ron Show said.
The firefighters are still in danger no matter where it is.
Firefighters think this fire will take weeks to put out.
“We’re not sure. We’re preparing for the worst and making plans to be here for a long time, two to four weeks, and will reevaluate then,” said Captain Brent Pascua with Cal Fire San Diego.
The company wants to put a factory near homes.
Putting water on it also causes more fires, but you have to put water on it.
“You have to put water on it to keep the fire confined, but that water damages the batteries, also allowing them to arc, starting another fire. We’re just trying to keep the public safe and keep the fire contained to the building,” Captain Brent Pascua with Cal Fire San Diego said.
The chain reaction can happen when a lithium-ion battery creates heat faster than it can dissipate. That rapid increase in temperature can then turn to fire.
They want to build another one near homes and businesses.
“Here in the middle of nowhere, and it’s still dangerous. The facility being proposed in La Mesa is in a highly concentrated urban area,” said La Mesa Vice Mayor Laura Lothian.
The fire captured the attention of North County residents opposing the Seguro battery storage site and now those living in La Mesa, where another battery facility is in the works.
“Hasty, to say the least, to be building these things without thinking it all the way through,” Lothian said.
This is Gavin Newsom’s Green New Deal at work. It is killing the economy and risking fires they can’t put out in a drought state. This is only the transition. They are planning many more of these factories. Many have permits, and many are in middle-class neighborhoods.
Currently, in Otay Mesa, officials continue to monitor the air quality and the water runoff to ensure it’s safe for crews to be near. Fire crews are focusing on keeping the fire from spreading to any of the neighboring buildings, which also house batteries.
They want to put one in a neighborhood with as many as 21 schools nearby. Neighbors are fighting it. They don’t want it.
But, duh, it’s green. Suck it up, Buttercup, Gavin wants it to save the planet.
They shove these battery storage facilities down community’s throats with “it’s good for the environment!” When it’s actually toxic & a fire hazard.
— Amy Reichert (@amyforsandiego) May 20, 2024
Watch for more information:
The Fire Continues to Burn & They Don’t Know What to Do
San Diego has flown in experts now to put the fire out.
According to San Diego journalist Amy Reichert, the San Diego fire department has elected to fly in fire experts to “study” the fire because they have no idea how to manage it… . Meanwhile, poisonous fumes from burning lithium batteries continue to spew into the air.
The Gateway facility is around 80,000 square feet, but the blaze is reportedly only in one building. It should have been out in hours, except for the Lithium-Ion batteries and how they are stored and maintained.
The fire has already consumed 5 million gallons of water, and firefighters estimate they will use a total of 15-20 million gallons. Lethal amounts of Hydrogen Cyanide were present in the air for three hours after the fire began.
As one X poster wrote, “Put one each next to the homes of the 9 Dem City Clowncil members, and the 3 Screaming Mimis on the Board of Supes, and put one on either side of Climate Fraudster Terra Lawson-Remer’s domicile.”
They are clowns. This entire NetZero and Climate extremism are without credibility or science. Democrats are the anti-science party.
Oh, but it’s such clean energy.
It’s Not the First, Nor the Last
There was a Lithium Ion battery factory fire in Phoenix in 2017.
Battery junkyards are a problem, too.
China had a big Lithium Ion factory fire in May 2023.
Morris, Illinois, had one in 2021.
Tesla had a big factory fire in 2022 in Moss Landing.
Emphasis added
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