Resource
Handling a damaged pack
A damaged lithium cell can vent gas above 600 degrees with no warning and no flame first. Everything below assumes the pack is already suspect. If it is smoking or burning, call 999 or 112 and stand well back.
How to spot one
- Swelling, bulging or a split case
- Heat with nothing plugged in
- Hissing, or a sharp sweet smell
- Leaking fluid, or white residue at the terminals
- Any pack that has been dropped hard, crushed or submerged
Do this
- Isolate it outdoors on bare ground, sand or concrete
- Keep three metres clear and stay upwind
- Store it away from anything that burns, including other packs
- Photograph it from a distance so we can bring the right container
- Report it, then leave it alone
Never do this
- Do not charge it, not even to test it
- Do not puncture, cut or open the case
- Do not put it in water
- Do not stack anything on it or seal it in a bag
- Do not carry it through an occupied room if there is another way out
Then hand it over
We collect damaged packs in a container built for them, lined and packed with non-combustible granulate. Do not put one in a normal bin or a normal vehicle.