Stronger warnings on batteries' fire danger urged for passengers

U.S. airline passengers need stronger warnings about the fire risk from the rechargeable lithium batteries that power cellphones and laptop computers, say federal officials.

Batteries caused fire, smoke or heat 13 times from February 2001 to July 2007, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The incidents in the last 17 months of the period almost doubled those of the previous decade, the board said.

"Most air passengers and flight crews are likely unaware of the fire risks," the NTSB said. "The board is not aware of a widespread or recurrent media campaign effort being made to educate and inform the air-traveling public."

The board is concerned that safety warnings aren't reaching travelers even after regulators issued advisories and created a Web site (http://safetravel.dot.gov).

Since Jan. 1, loose lithium batteries have been banned from checked baggage. The new regulation, designed to reduce the risk of lithium battery fires, continues to allow most lithium batteries in checked bags if they are installed in electronic devices, or in carry-on baggage if protected from short circuiting in their original packaging or in individual plastic bags or a protective travel case.

"Doing something as simple as keeping a spare battery in its original retail packaging or a plastic zip-lock bag will prevent unintentional short-circuiting and fires," said Krista Edwards, Deputy Administrator of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

The NTSB made the recommendation for stronger warnings to airline passengers in a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. Two of five board members dissented, saying warnings should also go to shippers of batteries on cargo planes.

FAA spokeswoman Alison Duquette said her agency will review the NTSB recommendation.

A United Parcel Service plane was destroyed in February 2006 in Philadelphia after a fire probably began in containers storing electronic equipment, the NTSB concluded last month. While the board couldn't determine the cause of the fire, the incident prompted the scrutiny of lithium battery risks.

The 13 battery incidents cited by the NTSB occurred before, during and after flights. The number of batteries flown will keep rising due to the popularity of portable electronic devices, the NTSB said.