On Thursday afternoon, a lithium-ion battery fire broke out at the renewable energy storage facility of San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) in Escondido, California. Although the fire appeared to be extinguished, officials are still ensuring that residents and students stay away from the area to prevent any re-ignition.
The storage facility is located at 571 Escondido St, about 30 miles north of San Diego. Tyler Batson, a chief officer at the local fire department, told Epoch Times that after 1 a.m. on Friday, “there was no smoke or flames rising.”
Batson also mentioned that the interior of the facility maintained lower temperatures, allowing some technicians to enter and confirm if the batteries involved in the fire were still giving off excessive heat.
According to fire officials, a technician working inside the facility noticed a battery rack on fire. The fire department promptly responded around 12:09 p.m. on Thursday and immediately sought assistance from the hazardous materials response teams of San Diego city and county.
The facility’s yard houses multiple lithium-ion battery racks capable of storing up to 30 megawatts of renewable energy collected from solar panels. During sunset or peak electricity demand periods, this energy is released into the grid.
Teams from San Diego and Escondido, along with a private company, Capstone Fire and Safety Management, which signed a contract with SDG&E, are collaborating to manage incidents at the facility.
Batson stated that the renewable energy battery storage facility is enclosed by fencing and relatively small in size, with several stacked battery containers inside. Lithium-ion batteries can retain heat for extended periods, prompting officials to continue monitoring the site and keep people away from the facility.
On Friday afternoon, residences and businesses in several blocks around the building remained under evacuation orders, with residents instructed to leave the area. Batson said, “We just want to make sure the fire is completely extinguished before lifting the evacuation order.”
He mentioned that despite smoke lingering around the facility, ongoing air monitoring did not detect any harmful chemicals, including carbon dioxide.
Escondido Union School District also canceled operations at three campuses on Friday.
In a joint statement on Friday, SDG&E and Escondido Fire Department stated, “Due to the nature of the system, industry standards allow fires to burn in a safe and controlled environment until extinguished. SDG&E will continue to closely work with fire officials until the flames in the storage containers are completely extinguished, which may take up to 48 hours.”
As part of California’s climate action agenda, Escondido’s renewable energy storage facility began operations in 2016 with approval from the California Public Utilities Commission to accelerate energy storage.
This fire marks the third battery project fire in the region over the past year. In September 2023, a fire occurred at the Terra-Gen battery storage facility in Valley Center, California. Additionally, in May of this year, a fire broke out at a battery storage facility in Otay Mesa near the Mexico border, causing fear among residents due to toxic smoke.
San Diego County officials plan to consider a moratorium on adding battery storage sites until stricter fire safety regulations are established.