Lithium-Ion Batteries Burn For Days After San Pedro Big Rig Crash

A big rig overturned in San Pedro near the Port of Los Angeles, causing damage to lithium-ion battery cargo and causing a fire that burned for days.

The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to the Intersection of North Seaside Avenue and South Navy Way in San Pedro, California on Thursday, September 26, 2024. A semi-truck containing large lithium-ion batteries rolled onto its side as it was traveling on the CA-47.

Firefighters arrived to find smoke coming from the overturned trailer and reports of batteries inside. First-arriving responders immediately stopped traffic and kept the roadway clear to protect the public. As time went on, an explosion occurred inside the container and blew one side of the container open, where flames could be seen coming out for many hours.

Commanders decided to avoid using water to extinguish the fire to keep from washing hazardous materials into Los Angeles waterways. Crews decided to allow them to burn overnight, while monitoring the situation from a safe distance and keeping the public out of the area.

On Friday, firefighters devised a plan to relocate the batteries to a vacant rail yard location on Terminal Island close to LAFD Fire Station 40 to allow the batteries to continue to burn and complete their chemical reactions in a location that would be less impactful on traffic and the Port of Los Angeles operations. The plan was executed on September 27, 2024, at approximately 2:00 PM, and two LAFD Heavy Rescues and other heavy machinery carefully lifted the container onto a trailer and transported it to the vacant rail yard. Later that evening, the roadway was cleaned up and reopened.

The following morning, the incident was handed over the to United States Coast Guard and LAFD cleared the scene. Thankfully there were no injuries for the duration of the incident.