Lithium-ion battery pack sparks fire that destroys Powell Butte detached garage

Residents with garden hose, fire crews spare nearby home, with minor damage

POWELL BUTTE, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The failure of a charging portable lithium-ion battery pack sparked a fire Saturday night that destroyed a detached garage and also damaged a nearby home, initially protected by residents with a garden hose, officials said.

Crook County Fire and Rescue was called out around 10:15 p.m. to the structure fire on Southwest Riggs Road, Division Chief Russell Deboodt said.

“The son saw the fire out the bedroom window” and told his parents, Deboodt said.

Crews arrived to find the 1,500-square-foot detached garage fully ablaze. Despite the property owners’ and firefighters’ efforts, the home had damage to three windows, as well as melted siding and charred eaves.

There were no injuries

Ten firefighters were called out, using two engines, a water tender, a medic and several command vehicles.

The garage-shop did not have personal vehicles in it but did have four-wheelers, a jet ski and a riding lawn mower, Deboodt said.

The residents had a lithium-ion battery pack of the kind often used by campers plugged into the wall and charging. While such fires are relatively rare, “there’s a reason you can’t put that stuff in your checked baggage on a plane – they can catch fire,” Deboodt said.

The fire agency was assisted by the Crook County Sheriff’s Office, while Redmond Fire and Rescue sent a mutual aid engine and Jefferson County EMS sent a mutual aid ambulance to cover the district during the fire.